Department of Health and Social Care

Royston Hospital

Sir Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans the NHS has for the future of Royston Hospital; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Hammond: NHS Property Services, who own the Royston Hospital site, are working with the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and local Sustainability and Transformation Plan Estates Group colleagues with a review of options for Royston Hospital, including the potential to create a neighbourhood health and wellbeing centre. The review also includes the nearby Royston Health Centre. As part of this review, NHS Property Services and the CCG continue to work with local partners providing health services to determine the right level of services and the appropriate use of the existing estate options to support the needs of the people of Royston. No decisions have yet been made. The work with partners includes Addenbrookes Hospital who are looking to provide additional services from Royston Hospital.

Spinal Muscular Atrophy: Drugs

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that (a) nusinersen/Spinraza and (b) other life-saving drugs are made available for people with spinal muscular atrophy.

Steve Brine: The Government wants National Health Service patients to be able to benefit from effective new medicines in a way that represents value for money to the taxpayer. Through its technology appraisal and highly specialised technologies programmes, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) makes recommendations for the NHS on whether new medicines should be routinely funded by the NHS. NHS organisations are legally required to fund medicines recommended by NICE. NICE is currently developing technology appraisal guidance on the use of Spinraza for the treatment of spinal muscular atrophy. NICE was unable to recommend Spinraza as an effective use of NHS resources in its draft guidance published in August 2018. Discussions have since been taking place between the manufacturer of Spinraza, Biogen, and NHS England to explore whether there are commercial flexibilities that might enable NICE to recommend the drug as a clinically and cost-effective use of NHS resources. Biogen has now submitted a revised submission and a meeting of NICE’s independent Appraisal Committee took place on 6 March to consider the recommendations. Details from the meeting will made available on the NICE website in due course.

Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidance his Department has issued to health professionals that prescribe Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors on advice to patients on the potential for (a) erectile dysfunction and (b) other side effects after patients have stopped taking that medication.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) are authorised for the treatment of depression and anxiety disorders. Information about possible side-effects associated with treatment are provided in the product information which is available to all prescribers and patients. All SSRIs include sexual dysfunction (problems with erection or ejaculation) within the list of possible side effects. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is contributing to an ongoing European review of persistent sexual dysfunction for all SSRI medicines. All SSRIs may be associated with withdrawal reactions on stopping or reducing treatment and product information for healthcare professionals and patients includes advice on gradual withdrawal of treatment and management of symptoms. In addition to the product information which is approved by the MHRA, communications and guidance may be issued to raise awareness of particular safety concerns. Information about possible withdrawal reactions and the need to gradually reduce the dose when stopping treatment was issued in 2004 and subsequently incorporated into general guidance published on the MHRA website in 2014. The safety of SSRIs is continually monitored by the MHRA.

Department of Health and Social Care: Public Consultation

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many consultations by his Department (a) are open, (b) are closed awaiting a Government response and (c) have been initiated since 2016.

Caroline Dinenage: All public Government consultations are uploaded onto GOV.UK where one can filter consultations by many criteria, including department, official document status and date of publication.

Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust

Martin Vickers: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the timeframe is for Getting It Right First Time units to visit (a) Northern Lincolnshire and (b) Goole NHS Trust in relation to (i) gastroenterology and (ii) dermatology.

Caroline Dinenage: A timeframe for the Getting It Right First Time (GIRFT) programme to begin work with Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust regarding its gastroenterology and dermatology specialties has yet to be established. The GIRFT team has been in touch with the Trust about this work and it has agreed that the Trust will notify the team when it is ready to commence.

Physiotherapy

Martin Vickers: To asks the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the timetable is for the implementation of all of the pilots for first contact physiotherapy practitioners; and when the outcomes of those pilots will be reported.

Caroline Dinenage: The First Contact Practitioners (FCP) pilot is part of NHS England’s plan to increase staff working in primary care to help ease pressure on general practice. FCPs are physiotherapists with advance practice, who are able to support patient management in primary care. To date, 41 of 42 physiotherapy practitioner pilot sites have commenced, with a further site scheduled to go live on 1 April 2019. An evaluation report is due to be completed in spring 2019, which is based on pilot site mobilisation. Evaluation will continue during 2019/20.

Nurses: Care Homes

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reasons registered nurses employed by nursing and care homes are not able to administer medication by injection or change dressings for patients who are self-funding where continuing healthcare funding is not in place; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Dinenage: We are not aware of any reason under the National Framework for Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care, or as part of the professional regulation of registered nurses, why appropriately trained registered nurses employed by care homes would not be able to administer medication by injection, or change dressings, for self-funded residents.

Continuing Care: Finance

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what guidelines he has issued to clinical commissioning groups to ensure that they accept and process without delay applications received from clinicians for fast-track continuing healthcare funding; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Dinenage: Under the National Framework for Continuing Healthcare and NHS Funded Nursing Care (October 2018), a clinical commissioning group (CCG) must accept and immediately action a Fast Track Pathway Tool where the Tool has been properly completed. The National Framework states that CCGs should have processes in place to enable Fast Track care packages to be commissioned quickly and it is not appropriate for individuals to experience delay in the delivery of their care package while concerns over the use of the Fast Track Pathway Tool are resolved. NHS England is responsible for holding CCGs to account if they are not following the National Framework.

Continuing Care: Finance

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many fast-track applications for continuing healthcare funding have been rejected by each clinical commissioning group in the last twelve months for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Caroline Dinenage: The statistical information regarding individual clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) and the eligibility of Fast Track applications is attached. In the last 12 months, all completed assessments for the Continuing Healthcare Fast Track Pathway have resulted in the individual being found eligible. This is because, under the National Framework for Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care, the completed Fast Track Pathway Tool, with clear reasons why the individual fulfils the criteria and which clearly evidences that an individual is both rapidly deteriorating and may be entering terminal phase, is in itself sufficient to establish eligibility. However, some Fast Track Pathway referrals do not meet this criteria. The National Framework for Continuing Healthcare and NHS-funded Nursing Care specifies that ‘exceptionally, there may be circumstances where CCGs receive a completed Tool which appears to show that the individual’s condition is not related to the above criteria at all.’ In these instances, NHS England advises that the referral be recorded as ‘discounted before assessment’. This category also includes other scenarios, for instance those cases where the individual passes away. Data regarding this group has only been collected since the second quarter of 2018-19. During the six months for which we have data since then, 1,838 referrals have been recorded as ‘discounted before assessment’. During this period, 45,484 referrals for the Fast Track Pathway were assessed as eligible.



PQ229704 attached data
(Excel SpreadSheet, 776.35 KB)

Department of Health and Social Care: Chief Scientific Advisers

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many meetings he held with his Department’s Chief Scientific Adviser between 1 December 2018 and 28 February 2019.

Caroline Dinenage: For the period 1 December 2018 and 28 February 2019, my Rt. hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care met with the Department’s Chief Scientific Adviser (CSA) seven times, and the CSA met with other Health and Social Care ministers on 12 occasions.

HIV Infection: Drugs

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 7 March 2019 to Question 227401 on HIV, what the timetable is for the rollout of additional places on the Pre-exposure Prophylaxis Impact trial in London .

Steve Brine: Commissioners in London have confirmed that they are committed to supporting the successful expansion of the Pre-exposure Prophylaxis (PrEP) Impact trial and have agreed to make additional trial places available. The number of additional trial places in London and the timescale for rollout will be confirmed shortly.

NHS: Agency Workers

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much has been spent on agency and locum staff in the NHS (a) in total, (b) for each job type and (c) in each year since May 2010.

Stephen Hammond: The data requested is only available from 2015/16 onwards. These figures show that, for all staff groups, the amount spent on agency has fallen since the introduction of new measures to reduce agency spend across the National Health Service in 2015/16. Since the introduction of these measures, agency spend has fallen from a peak of £3.6 billion in 2015/16 to £2.4 billion in 2017/18 – a £1.2 billion reduction. Even so, we recognise that there is still more to be done in this area, and we are committed to reducing trusts’ reliance on expensive agency workers, whilst ensuring they can meet their temporary staffing needs.  2015/162016/172017/182018/19 Year To Date Month 10Nursing, midwifery and health visiting£1,150 million£ 966 million£809 million£698 millionHealthcare assistant and other supportReported as other£199 million£134 million£103 millionMedical and dental£1,346 million£1,049 million£950 million£784 millionScientific, therapeutic and technicalReported as otherReported as other£248 million£206 millionHealthcare scienceReported as otherReported as other£40 million£29 millionAdmin and estatesReported as other£342 million£223 million£178 millionOther£1,172 million£379 million£3 million£2 millionTotal agency£3,668 million£2,934 million£2,407 million£1,999 million

NHS: Trade Agreements

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent discussions he has held with the Secretary of State for International Trade on the potential role of the NHS in future trade deals after the UK leaves the EU.

Stephen Hammond: The Department of Health and Social Care works extensively with the Department for International Trade to ensure that there is a clear cross-Government position on the protection of the National Health Service in future trade agreements. Additionally, the Parliamentary Under Secretary for Innovation (Baroness Blackwood of North Oxford) will be representing the Department of Health and Social Care in upcoming Cabinet-level discussions on future trade deals. The Government has repeatedly made its position on this clear - protecting public services, including the NHS, is of the utmost importance for the United Kingdom. The NHS is not, and never will be, for sale to the private sector, whether overseas or domestic. We will ensure that no trade agreements alter these fundamental facts. None of the trade agreements that we are party to as European Union members threaten or allow privatisation of public services, including the NHS. The Government will ensure that future trade deals include the necessary exclusions, exemptions, and reservations to ensure that decisions on how to run public services, including the NHS, will always remain the sole competence of UK governments, including the devolved administrations, and not our trade partners.

Asthma

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the finding in Asthma UK's report, The Reality of Asthma Care in the UK -  Annual Asthma Survey 2018 that two-thirds of patients do not receive a follow-up appointment with their GP after receiving emergency care, if he will take steps tackle the reasons for that finding.

Steve Brine: Respiratory disease is a clinical priority within the recently published NHS Long Term Plan. The Plan has the overarching objective of improving outcomes for people with respiratory disease, including asthma. NHS England supports the national asthma audit programme that provides data on a range of indicators to show improvements and opportunities for further improvements in asthma outcomes. The recently published general practitioner (GP) contract has made improvements to the Quality and Outcomes framework through the introduction of quality improvement modules. This replaces the current system of exception reporting with a personalised care adjustment approach, which will better reflect individual clinical situations and patients’ wishes. NHS England and GPC England have agreed to an ongoing programme of indicator review in key priority areas, including asthma in 2019/20. Through the GP contract and Primary Care Networks, clinical pharmacists will take responsibility for the care management of patients with chronic diseases and undertake clinical medication reviews to proactively manage people with complex polypharmacy, and those with multiple long term conditions, in particular people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma. National programmes such NHS RightCare are using leading edge medical evidence and practical support to help local health economies to make best use of their resources and using tested evidence based processes to make sustainable improvements to patient care. As part of this programme, a RightCare asthma pathway will be published in the spring which will outline the optimal pathway for patients, including the need for follow-up appointments following emergency care.

Tomography

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate he has made of the average waiting time for a PET-CT scan in (a) Oxford West and Abingdon constituency, (b) Oxfordshire and (c) England.

Stephen Hammond: Average waiting times data for a PET-CT scan is not available in the format requested. NHS England publishes monthly data on diagnostic waiting times which includes the volume of patients waiting for a diagnostic test each month, including a CT scan. This data is available nationally as well as at clinical commissioning group and trust level at the following link:https://www.england.nhs.uk/statistics/statistical-work-areas/diagnostics-waiting-times-and-activity/monthly-diagnostics-waiting-times-and-activity/

Tomography

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what comparative estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of providing PET-CT scanning services through a (a) private contractor and (b) a NHS trust.

Steve Brine: The estimated total cost to National Health Service trusts and NHS foundation trusts of providing PET-CT scans is £29.4 million, with an average unit cost of £570 per examination. Costs are not collected nationally by private contractors.

Radiotherapy

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many radiotherapy centres deliver stereotactic body radiation therapy.

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to support the extension of stereotactic body radiation therapy services for lung cancer in radiotherapy centres throughout England.

Steve Brine: There are 25 providers, two of which work in partnership, of stereotactic body radiation therapy, which is called Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy (SABR). Currently, SABR is routinely commissioned to treat early non-small cell lung cancer in patients that are not suitable for surgery. SABR is currently restricted to these 25 centres in England whilst evidence of clinical effectiveness emerges. This is regularly reviewed by NHS England’s national specialised commissioning team and was last reviewed during 2016/17. It is expected that access will be reviewed again over the course of 2019/20 and 2020/21. However, this will be dependent on the emergence of clinical evidence and the development of new NHS England clinical commissioning policy.

Mental Health Services: Veterans

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to improve mental healthcare for veterans in the North East.

Jackie Doyle-Price: In addition to mainstream mental health services, NHS England commissions two bespoke services for veterans experiencing mental health difficulties. The first is the Transition, Intervention and Liaison Service (TILS) which supports serving personnel who need additional support as they are leaving the armed forces and veterans who have mental health issues. The TILS is also the entry point to the Complex Treatment Service (CTS), the second service commissioned by NHS England. The CTS is able to provide a range of more intensive care and treatment for veterans with military related complex mental health difficulties, many of whom will have experienced trauma. The provider of the TILS in the North is Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust in partnership with Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys, Hull and East Riding and Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trusts. The provider of the CTS is Leeds and York Partnership NHS Foundation Trust who work in partnership with Combat Stress to deliver the service. In December last year, NHS England also announced an extra £10 million to expand the already established Veterans’ Mental Health TILS and the Veterans’ Mental Health CTS, as well as seeking to close the gaps in current mental health provision to capture those individuals that are nearing crisis.

General Practitioners: Garston and Halewood

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he will enable Liverpool CCG to award General Medical Contracts rather than continue with Alternative Provider Medical Services Contracts to ensure the continuation of GP services currently being provided by Primary Care Connect in the Garston and Halewood Constituency.

Steve Brine: The current Alternative Provider Medical Services provider has given notice to terminate their contracts. NHS Liverpool Clinical Commissioning Group is now working with primary care providers in Liverpool to identify an alternate provider or group of providers, that may include an existing General Medical Services contract holder, to run the affected services to ensure continuity for patients.

General Practitioners: Contracts

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of his policy of not allowing GP services provided via Alternative Provider Medical Services Contracts to be provided using other contractual models such as General Medical Services Contracts; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what research his Department has commissioned on the effect on GP services in deprived communities of continuing to provide GP services through Alternative Provider Medical Services Contracts when the operators of such contracts hand them back; and if he will make a statement.

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to review the policy of General Medical Services Contracts not being able to provide GP services when Alternative Provider Medical Contracts fail.

Steve Brine: NHS England’s Primary Medical Care Policy and Guidance Manual (first published 15 November 2017) provides local commissioners of primary medical services the context, information and tools to safely commission and contract management primary medical care contracts. There is no prohibition on issuing General Medical Services or Personal Medical Services contracts under this guidance and every local commissioner needs to consider each individual case on the basis of local circumstances that apply. Considerations will also need to factor appropriate legislation and NHS England’s Standing Financial Instructions. Commissioners need to comply with their obligations under the Public Contract Regulations (“PCR 2015”) and the NHS (Procurement, Patient Choice and Competition Regulations) (No. 2) Regulations 2013 (“the NHS Regulations”). One of the impacts of these Regulations is commissioner should not unnecessarily restrict contracts to only certain kinds of providers. In practice this will mean the use of Alternative Provider Medical Services contracts in procurements. NHS England’s Standing Financial Instructions additionally require all proposed clinical procurements for all types of revenue expenditure which last for five years or more, including options to extend clauses, must be submitted to and approved by the NHS England Commercial Executive Group before advertisement. Whilst these considerations do not the use of General and Personal Medical Services contracts where appropriate and justifiable, these are likely to be exceptional. As part of the NHS Long Term Plan, Parliament and the Government both asked the NHS to make consensus proposals for how primary legislation might be adjusted to better support delivery of the agreed changes set out in this plan.

Blood: Contamination

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to find those responsible for the blood products that were imported from the US during the 1970s and 1980s which were contaminated and consequently caused people in the UK to be infected with HIV and Hepatitis.

Jackie Doyle-Price: In July 2017 the Prime Minister announced the creation of a full public inquiry, under the Inquiries Act 2005, to conduct an independent review of all the events surrounding the tragedy of infection with blood products. Following a consultation, the Inquiry’s wide ranging, and United Kingdom-wide terms of reference were presented to Parliament by the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (Rt. hon David Lidington MP), and published in July 2018. Chaired by Sir Brian Langstaff, the Inquiry is currently gathering evidence and is due to hear testimony from those affected by the events, as well as those responsible from the Government, the National Health Service and other organisations. Further information is available on the Inquiry’s website at the following link: https://www.infectedbloodinquiry.org.uk/

Department for Work and Pensions

Personal Independence Payment

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people judged to be entitled to the higher rate of disabled living allowance for life have been granted the standard rate when assessed for migration to personal independence payment.

Justin Tomlinson: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Universal Credit: Children

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many families in receipt of the lower child disability addition have transitioned from legacy benefits to universal credit.

Justin Tomlinson: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Universal Credit: Children

Chris Stephens: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many families are in receipt of the lower child disability addition on universal credit for (a) one child (b) two children and (c) three or more children.

Justin Tomlinson: The estimated number of Universal Credit households with Disabled Child Entitlement at the lower rate in November 2018, Great Britain is given below. The notes should be read in conjunction with the information provided in the table. Estimated number of Households on Universal Credit with Disabled Child Entitlement at the lower rate, by number of children, in November 2018, Great Britain.  Number of HouseholdsOne child15,890Two children570Three or more children10Total16,480 Source: Universal Credit Household dataset. Notes: Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10 so may not sum.Households with Disabled Child Entitlement at the lower rate may also have entitlement at the higher rate for one or more children.A count date of the second Thursday of the month is used when calculating the statistics for households on Universal Credit. Further information on the background and methodology for Universal Credit can be accessed here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/739399/universal-credit-statistics-background-methodology.pdf

Social Security Benefits: Wirral

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many children there are in households directly affected by the two-child limit on welfare payments in (a) Wallasey and (b) Wirral.

Alok Sharma: Data published in June 2018, broken down by country can be accessed at:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-tax-credit-and-universal-credit-claimants-statistics-related-to-the-policy-to-provide-support-for-a-maximum-of-2-children-april-2018. The information on the level requested was not captured in the reporting database and therefore is not available. This was due to the small numbers of Universal Credit cases recorded as being affected by this policy, meaning it is not possible to break down these totals by smaller geographic areas without the risk of identifying individual claimants.

Social Security Benefits: North West

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many successful appeals there have been against decisions on (a) employment and support allowance and (b) personal independence payment claims in (a) Wallasey, (b) Wirral, (c) Liverpool city region and (d) the North West in each year since 2010.

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many successful mandatory reconsiderations there have been of decisions on (a) employment and support allowance and (b) personal independence payment claims in (a) Wallasey, (b) Wirral, (c) Liverpool city region and (d) the North West in each year since 2010.

Justin Tomlinson: Employment and Support AllowanceInformation on appeal outcomes in relation to Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) Work Capability Assessments by several geographical areas is available on Stat-Xplore. This includes data at Regional, Parliamentary Constituency or Local Authority level as requested above.https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/Guidance on how to use Stat-Xplore can be found here:https://sw.stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/online-help/index.html The mandatory reconsideration process was introduced in 2013. The latest available information for Great Britain on the number of mandatory reconsiderations can be found in the ESA Outcomes of Work Capability Assessments quarterly statistics published here: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/employment-and-support-allowance-outcomes-of-work-capability-assessment It is the intention to produce further geographical breakdowns of these statistics in the future. Between April 2014 and June 2018, 3.7m ESA (post WCA) decisions have been made in Great Britain, of these 8% have been appealed and 4% have been overturned. Personal Independence Payment The information requested for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) Appeals in a) Wallasey b) Wirral c) Liverpool City Region and d) the North West is shown in the table below, by year of appeal clearance. Wallasey20142015201620172018 (Jan - Sept)Decision Maintained1040608070Decision Overturned at Appeal1080100150180Appeal Overturn Rate55%65%61%66%73%  From 2014 through to September 2018 in Wallasey, of the 770 appeals, 520 (67%) saw the decision overturned. Since PIP was introduced up to September 2018 9,180 initial decisions have been made in Wallasey and 6% have been overturned at appeal. Wirral20142015201620172018 (Jan - Sept)Decision Maintained30140200240200Decision Overturned at Appeal30240330490500Appeal Overturn Rate53%64%63%67%71% From 2014 through to September 2018 in Wirral, of the 2,400 appeals, 1,600 (66%) saw the decision overturned. Since PIP was introduced up to September 2018 29,320 initial decisions have been made in Wirral and 5% have been overturned at appeal. Liverpool City Region20142015201620172018 (Jan - Sept)Decision Maintained1205409501,060720Decision Overturned at Appeal1308501,6602,3402,140Appeal Overturn Rate53%61%64%69%75% From 2014 through to September 2018 in Liverpool City Region, of the 10,500 appeals, 7,110 (68%) saw the decision overturned. Since PIP was introduced up to September 2018, 146,380 initial decisions have been made in Liverpool City region and 5% have been overturned at appeal. The North West20142015201620172018 (Jan - Sept)Decision Maintained3002,4303,8404,0702,650Decision Overturned at Appeal3202,9905,4907,4406,770Appeal Overturn Rate51%55%59%65%72% From 2014 through to September 2018 in the North West, of the 36,310 appeals, 23,010 (63%) saw the decision overturned. Since PIP was introduced up to September 2018 537,600 initial decisions have been made in the North West and 4% have been overturned at appeal. Since PIP was introduced 3.7m decisions have been made in Great Britain up to September 2018, of these 10% have been appealed and 5% have been overturned. The information requested for Personal Independence Payment Mandatory Reconsiderations (MR) in a) Wallasey b) Wirral c) Liverpool City Region and d) the North West is shown in the table below, by year of MR clearance. Wallasey20142015201620172018 (Jan - Oct)New Decision – Award Changed at MR4090130170150Decision Unchanged/Not Revised at MR110380530770560Percentage of MRs where the Decision was Changed24%19%20%18%21% Wirral20142015201620172018 (Jan - Oct)New Decision – Award Changed at MR120260370540470Decision Unchanged/Not Revised at MR3101,1601,7302,3601,650Percentage of MRs where the Decision was Changed27%18%18%19%22%  Liverpool City Region20142015201620172018 (Jan - Oct)New Decision – Award Changed at MR4401,1501,7602,3802,270Decision Unchanged/Not Revised at MR1,2705,0508,4309,7407,900Percentage of MRs where the Decision was Changed26%19%17%20%22%  The North West20142015201620172018 (Jan - Oct)New Decision – Award Changed at MR1,2504,7106,8109,0307,960Decision Unchanged/Not Revised at MR3,95021,55031,21036,20027,080Percentage of MRs where the Decision was Changed24%18%18%20%23% Data has been rounded to the nearest 10.PIP Appeals data taken from the DWP PIP computer system’s management information. Therefore this data may differ from that held by Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service for various reasons such as delays in data recording and other methodological differences in collating and preparing statistics.PIP was introduced in 2013 to replace Disability Living Allowance for working age people.The geography relates to the origin of the claim (i.e. derived from claimant’s postcode) rather than the location of where the tribunal was held.Decisions overturned at appeal may include a number of appeals that have been lapsed (which is where DWP changed the decision after an appeal was lodged but before it was heard at Tribunal).Some decisions which are changed at MR, and where the claimant continues to appeal for a higher PIP award, are then changed again at tribunal appeal. Therefore the number of people who had a decision changed at MR and the number of people who had a decision changed at tribunal appeal cannot be added together.

Social Security Benefits

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether credits for approved training can be used towards (a) the second contribution condition for contribution-based employment and support allowance and (b) contribution-based jobseeker’s allowance.

Justin Tomlinson: A person undertaking training approved by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions will be awarded Class 1 National Insurance credits. These credits will help to satisfy the second contribution condition for both contributory Employment and Support Allowance and contribution-based Jobseeker’s Allowance.

Personal Independence Payment: Appeals

Sir Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average cost to the public purse is of a successful appeal for personal independence payment.

Justin Tomlinson: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Universal Credit

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to help support (a) older people and (b) people with (i) mental and (ii) physical health conditions to transition to universal credit.

Alok Sharma: The Department is committed to ensuring that all claimants, especially the most vulnerable, are supported as they move onto Universal Credit.Claimants, including vulnerable claimants and those with mental and physical health conditions, can receive continuous tailored support managed through work coaches. DWP staff working with claimants complete extensive training that prepares them for their role. Specific training is provided for working with different vulnerable groups, with guidance to signpost claimants to relevant support, and these circumstances will be recorded on a claimant’s online account. We have started to deliver additional training in mental health that will help work coaches to build their expertise and provide the most effective support.We take a number of steps to identify individuals who will need support in making a claim to Universal Credit. For example, we identify claimants either prior to or at the initial claim stage, to discuss what support mechanisms need to be in place to make a claim. This can be through discussions with their Work Coach, the Universal Credit helpline and/or through home visits.From April 2019 Citizens Advice (England and Wales) and Citizens Advice Scotland will deliver a new ‘Help to Claim’ service to claimants, including the most vulnerable, who are making a new Universal Credit claim or moving from a legacy benefit to Universal Credit because of a change of circumstances. The Help to Claim service offers tailored, practical support to help people make a Universal Credit claim up to receiving their first full correct payment on time. This service will be available online, over the phone and face to face through local Citizens Advice services.

Welfare State: Females

Alex Burghart: Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, What steps the Government is taking to ensure that the welfare system works for women.

Justin Tomlinson: The welfare system treats individuals of all genders equally. It provides better support and incentives to claimants to enter employment and progress in work. DWP is committed to ensuring all claimants have the tailored support they need. We also continue to provide for groups who may need additional help. For example, Work Coaches can tailor conditionality where appropriate to the individual, particularly those with health issues or caring responsibilities.

Home Office

Travellers: Caravan Sites

Sir Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what his plans are for a review of whether it should be a criminal offence to trespass in the course of establishing an encampment; what the timetable is for such a review; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Nick Hurd: I refer my Right Honourable Friend to the response that I gave to a question from the Honourable Member for North East Hampshire on 7th March (226712).

Police: Dangerous Driving

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many dangerous driving cases by (a) police officer rank and (b) police force area the Independent Office for Police Conduct has considered in each of the last five years.

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many dangerous driving cases the Independent Office for Police Conduct has considered which have resulted in (a) misconduct not found, (b) no further action, (c) management advice, (d) a written warning, (e) a final written warning, (f) an extension of a final written warning, (g) a dismissal with notice and (h) a dismissal without notice in each of the last five  years.

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many cases the Independent Office for Police Conduct considered which lasted (a) less than six months, (b) six to 12 months, (c) 12 to 24 months, (d) 24 months or longer before a conclusion was reached in each of the last five years.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office does not hold data on IOPC investigations. The Independent Office of Police Conduct will write to my hon. Friend and I will place a copy of the letter in the Library of the House.

Public Spaces Protection Orders: Homelessness

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent discussions his Department has had with local authorities on the use of public spaces protection orders to target homeless people.

Victoria Atkins: The Home Office regularly discusses use of ASB powers with partners, including local authorities, through its strategic board.Public Spaces Protection Orders should be used proportionately to tackle anti-social behaviour, and not to target specific groups or the most vulnerable in our communities. We refreshed the statutory guidance on use of the powers in the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2014 in December 2017 to give greater emphasis on ensuring appropriate and proportionate use of the powers.

Proceeds of Crime: Grants

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how long it takes for the proceeds of serious crime to be administered to communities through (a) the safer communities fund and (b) other grant applications.

Mr Ben Wallace: The Home Office runs the Asset Recovery Incentivisation Scheme (ARIS), in which criminal property recovered under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 is divided between the Home Office and operational partners, based on their relative contribution to recovering these funds. These funds are calculated and paid quarterly in arrears to agencies, as soon as possible after the end of each quarter.The safer communities fund is not operated by the Home Office but by local police forces. There is an expectation that payments made under ARIS will be used to further drive up performance on asset recovery and, where appropriate, to fund local crime fighting priorities for the benefit of the community.

Crimes of Violence: Business Premises

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many recorded incidences there have been of (a) violence with injury crimes and (b) robberies from business properties in each year since 2012 by police force area.

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many recorded incidences there were of robberies from business properties where the theft was valued at under £200 in each year since 2012.

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many recorded incidences there were of robberies from business properties where the value of theft was valued at over £200 in each year since 2012.

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many recorded incidences of online fraud there were where the value of theft was under £200 in each year since 2012.

David Hanson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many recorded incidences of online fraud there were where the value of theft was greater than £200 in each year since 2012.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office collects and publishes data quarterly on police recorded crime, broken down by Police Force Area, which can be found here:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/police-recorded-crime-open-data-tablesThis includes the number of recorded offences of violence with injury, robbery of business property and fraud. However, information on the value of theft or whether or not fraud was committed online is not held centrally by the Home Office.

Street Preachers

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance he has provided to the police on street preachers; and what lessons have been learned from the arrest and subsequent release of Oluwole Ilesanmi in Enfield.

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the arrest and release of Oluwole Ilesanmi in Enfield, what steps he is taking to ensure that church groups can preach on the street.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Government does not prevent individuals from following their religious beliefs or cultural traditions provided they do so within the law. The diversity of modern Britain is one of our strengths and many British people of different faiths follow religious codes and practices.The right to freedom of expression is a vital part of a democratic society. It is a long-standing tradition in this country that people are free to share their views with others.Decisions on arrests are an operational matter for the police working within the provisions of the legal framework set by Parliament.

Refugees: Yorkshire and the Humber

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people are currently waiting for a decision on leave to remain as a stateless person in Yorkshire and the Humber.

Caroline Nokes: We do not hold the data required to answer the question in the requested format. The Home Office regularly shares information with UNHCR, relating to stateless applications and decisions made. The information provided is published by UNHCR, in regular trend reports. T, the latest published report by UNHCR on mid year trends to June 2017 can be found at the link below:https://www.unhcr.org/uk/statistics/unhcrstats/5aaa4fd27/mid-year-trends-june-2017.html

Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether his Department has any plans to increase the resources of the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority.

Victoria Atkins: Funding for the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority was increased in 2016/17 and 2017/18 to support it in delivering in its expanded remit to tackle labour exploitation across all labour sectors. Funding beyond 2019/20 will be a matter for the next Spending Review.

Refugees: Syria

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans he has to extend funding for the Syrian Vulnerable Person Resettlement Scheme beyond 2020; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to support family reunification as part of the Syrian Vulnerable Person Resettlement Scheme; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to support local authorities seeking to facilitate family reunification as part of the Syrian Vulnerable Person Resettlement Scheme; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the Syrian Vulnerable Person Resettlement Scheme, if he will expand the definition of a family unit beyond a spouse and minor children of a refugee.

Caroline Nokes: Work continues with local authorities and international partners to deliver the Government’s commitment to resettle 20,000 refugees under the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Scheme (VPRS) by 2020, including those with family links in the UK, and we are on track to do this. The Mandate Resettlement Scheme also allows those recognised by the UNCHR as refugees to join close family members here in the UK.We always aim to resettle families referred to the UK’s resettlement schemes by the UNHCR as close as possible to any family members already here in the UK, however this is subject to the availability of suitable and sustainable accommodation and relevant support services in that area.We are working with key stakeholders and international partners on our future Asylum and Resettlement Strategy. This includes consideration of the UK’s resettlement offer beyond 2020.

Police

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimates his Department has made of the reduction of frontline police officers in each year since 2015 in (a) Lambeth and Southwark BCU, (b) London and (c) England.

Mr Nick Hurd: The Home Office collects and publishes data annually on the primary function of police officers, by Police Force Area, as part of the ‘Police workforce, England and Wales’ statistical bulletins.Functions data are collected under the Police Objective Analysis (POA) framework. Officers with multiple responsibilities are recorded under their primary function. The number and proportion of officers employed in frontline policing roles can be calculated according to the frontline policing model set out by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS).Data on the number and proportion of officers in frontline policing roles in Metropolitan and City of London Police forces, and in England and Wales, can be found in Table_F5 of the accompanying data tables:https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/728153/police-workforce-tabs-jul18.odsData at lower levels of geography are not held centrally.

Crimes of Violence and Police

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans his Department has to (a) increase frontline police numbers and (b) ensure police have sufficient resources to tackle knife crime and other forms of violent crime.

Mr Nick Hurd: The police funding settlement for 2019/20 increases overall funding for the police by around £970 million, including additional pensions funding and income from Council Tax. Following the announcement of the settlement, Police and Crime Commissioners have set out plans to recruit nearly 3,000 extra police officers.The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced on 13 March an additional £100 million funding in 2019/20, including £80m of new funding from the Treasury. This will help in the police’s immediate response to the rise in serious knife crime, enabling priority forces to immediately begin planning to put in place the additional capacity they need. The funding will also be invested in Violence Reduction Units, bringing together a range of agencies including health, education, social services and others, to develop a multi-agency approach in preventing serious violence altogether. It is important that we recognise that greater law enforcement on its own will not reduce serious violence and that we must continue to focus on prevention.The majority of the investment will go towards supporting police forces where violent crime is impacting the most, to take immediate action to suppress the violence we are seeing, to make our streets safer. We are engaging with partners including the National Police Chiefs’ Council and the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners and we are developing the criteria by which forces will receive this funding.

Northern Ireland Office

Northern Ireland Office: Chief Scientific Advisers

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many meetings she held with her Department’s Chief Scientific Adviser between 1 December 2018 and 28 February 2019.

Karen Bradley: The Northern Ireland Office does not have a Chief Scientific Adviser.

Abortion: Northern Ireland

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, with reference to her oral contribution of 6 March 2019, Official Report column 949, that polls that they want to see change to the abortion laws in Northern Ireland—about 64%—are very clear that they want those changes to be made in Stormont, what the source is of that data.

Karen Bradley: The data comes from a ComRes survey conducted in Northern Ireland between 8 and 15 October 2018.

Treasury

Treasury: Public Consultation

Peter Dowd: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many consultations by his Department (a) are open, (b) are closed awaiting a Government response and (c) have been initiated since 2016.

Robert Jenrick: All public government consultations are uploaded onto GOV.UK where one can filter consultations by many criteria, including department, official document status and date of publication. As of 14th March 2019, HM Treasury has 7 open consultations, and 15 closed awaiting a Government response. 105 consultations have been initiated since 2016.

Cryptocurrencies

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to increase consumer awareness of the potential advantages and disadvantages of investing in cryptoassets.

John Glen: The Government has considered its approach to cryptoassets through the Cryptoassets Taskforce - comprised of the Treasury, the Bank of England, and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA)[1]. The Government will be consulting on its approach to cryptoassets this year. The FCA has issued consumer warnings highlighting the risks of cryptoassets and warning that any individual investing in cryptoassets should be prepared to lose money. Cryptoassets have also been added to the FCA’s ScamSmart website, which helps consumers to avoid falling victim to common types of scams and investment fraud. [1] https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/752070/cryptoassets_taskforce_final_report_final_web.pdf

Mortgages: Islam

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many high street banks offer Islamic mortgage services.

John Glen: The Government is committed to the availability of Islamic finance in the UK to ensure that no one is denied access to competitive financial products for reasons of faith.Sharia-compliant home purchase plans are enabled by regulations overseen by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). They are currently offered by four UK banks. Beyond the requirements set out in the FCA regulations, decisions around the pricing and availability of individual mortgage loans remain commercial decisions for lenders, and the Government does not seek to intervene in these decisions.

Access to Cash Review

Jonathan Reynolds: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether he plans to publish a formal response to the Access to Cash review, published on 6 March 2019; and if he will make a statement.

John Glen: The Government is committed to safeguarding access to cash. We have been engaging, and will continue to engage with, the regulators and industry to ensure people continue to have real choice over how they spend their money. Last year we conducted a call for evidence on cash and digital payments in the new economy. This sought to gather evidence on how changing preferences for cash and digital payments impact on different sectors, regions and demographics. The Government welcomes the Access to Cash Review, which will help inform our ongoing work to ensure cash remains accessible. The Government will formally respond to the call for evidence in due course.

Bank Services: Closures

Laura Pidcock: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, on what statutory basis a bank is able to close an account without disclosure to the customer concerned.

John Glen: Banks are under no obligation in law to inform customers of the reasons for an account closure. In addition, under s333A of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, it is a criminal offence for a person who has made a disclosure to the appropriate authorities under Part 7 (in relation to suspicions of money laundering) to inform the customer that they have done so, where that could prejudice an investigation. This applies to banks, where an account closure is the result of suspected criminal activity. Individual banks are responsible for compliance with this obligation.

Tax Avoidance

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to ensure that HMRC uses the rule of law rather than an opinion of fairness to determine what is payable for the loan charge.

Mel Stride: Parliament has legislated the charge on Disguised Remuneration (DR) loans following the normal Parliamentary process.DR schemes are contrived arrangements that pay loans in place of ordinary remuneration, with the sole purpose of avoiding income tax and National Insurance contributions. The loans are provided on terms that mean they are not repaid in practice, so they are no different to normal income and are, and always have been, taxable.The charge on DR loans, legislated in Finance Act 2017, is a charge on DR loan balances outstanding at 5 April 2019. Its announcement at Budget 2016 provided scheme users with a three-year period to repay their DR loans, or to agree a settlement with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) before the charge takes effect.HMRC’s role is to tackle avoidance and evasion, making sure people pay their fair share of tax and securing funding for our vital public services. Parliament has given HMRC the powers it needs to challenge businesses and individuals who do not pay their fair share, and it uses them responsibly and subject to appropriate checks and balances.

*No heading*

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer , what support his Department provides to UK businesses preparing and completing (a) import and (b) export declarations.

Mel Stride: Delivering a deal negotiated with the EU remains the Government’s top priority. However in the event of a ‘no deal’ businesses who trade with the EU will be subject to customs controls in the same way as businesses who are trading with the rest of the world. To help businesses make this transition, a number of temporary easements have been put in place which will help businesses make this transition. HMRC continues to proactively support businesses to meet their customs obligations engaging with a broad range of UK businesses and associations. Extensive guidance is available on gov.uk. HMRC has already written to 145,000 VAT registered EU businesses and 77,000 traders who trade with non-EU countries, to explain the steps they need to take to ahead of making import/export declarations. In addition, HMRC are actively engaged with a range of associations, small business trade bodies and intermediaries to help them prepare their members for any new customs obligations. Further support is available from customs intermediaries. HMRC wrote to businesses in February to explain what steps businesses should take, including how to make customs declarations themselves or via an intermediary. An £8 million investment has been made available to support intermediary training and increased automation.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Charities: Regulation

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, how many notices were issued by the Fundraising Regulator against charities in the last year.

Mims Davies: The Fundraising Regulator is an independent, non-statutory body that regulates fundraising across the charitable sector in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Fundraising Regulator issued notices to 59 charities that had failed to deal with Fundraising Preference Service suppression requests. These charities have been referred to the Information Commissioner’s Office because of a potential data law breach.

Charity Commission: Finance

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of the funding allocated to the Charity Commission.

Mims Davies: The Charity Commission is the regulator of charities in England and Wales. For charities to thrive, the sector needs a strong and effective regulator. Last year additional government funding of £5m per year was agreed in recognition of the growing pressures on the Commission’s core regulatory functions, particularly registration and compliance. The Civil Society Strategy has committed to further work with the Commission, in order to ensure it is adequately resourced to meet any future challenges.

Garden Bridge Trust

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, whether he has (a) had discussions with the Charity Commission and (b) received representations on the appropriateness of the Garden Bridge Trust chair meeting the Charity Commission chair in 2013 to seek his advice on how to register the trust as a charity.

Mims Davies: We have no record of any discussions between DCMS Ministers and the Charity Commission about the Garden Bridge Trust. We also have no record of any representations about the Garden Bridge Trust meeting with the Charity Commission. As stated in Helen Stephenson’s (Chief Executive, Charity Commission) letter to you in response to PQ 221693, the Commission’s case files show that, prior to registration, two officials at the Charity Commission held a teleconference with the Garden Bridge trustees and their representatives on 12 December 2013 to provide preregistration advice. It is not unusual for officials at the Commission to provide pre-registration advice where applications to register are for particular high-profile or complex organisations.

Visas: EEA Nationals

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what discussions he has had with the Home Secretary on short stay visitor visas for EEA nationals wishing to visit the UK after the UK leaves the EU.

Michael Ellis: My Department works closely with the Home Office on policies that affect tourism. The UK and the EU have proposed reciprocal visa-free travel arrangements to enable UK, EU and EEA citizens to continue to travel freely for tourism in the future. This is the case in both a deal or no deal scenario. The Government has also confirmed that EU nationals and citizens of Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway or Switzerland can continue to travel on a national ID card until December 2020 and use e-passport gates when travelling on a passport. We have published all of this information on Gov.uk.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport: Procurement

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, with reference to the guidance entitled, Procurement policy note 03/14: promoting tax compliance, how many suppliers were allocated contracts by his Department as a result of complying with (a) one and (b) more than one of the mitigating circumstances after failing the tax compliance questions.

Margot James: None of the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport’s suppliers have failed to meet the tax compliance criteria in the Procurement Policy Note 03/14.

Youth Clubs: Closures

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what estimate his Department has made of the number of youth centres that have closed in England since 2010.

Mims Davies: The information requested is not held centrally, and to obtain it would incur a disproportionate cost.

Youth Services: Finance

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment his Department has made of the total reduction in central Government funding for youth services provided by local authorities in England since 2010.

Mims Davies: Local authorities are responsible for allocating public funding to youth services in their area in line with local need. We believe they are best placed to know what is required in their communities. The Government has made over £200bn available to local authorities to spend on local services over this Spending Review.

Social Services: Young People

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of youth services and social services on reducing youth violence; and if he will make a statement.

Mims Davies: The Government recognises that the causes of youth crime are complex and are often tied to local factors. Local authorities allocate funding and deliver youth services in line with local need. The Government has made over £200bn available to local authorities to spend on local services over this Spending Review.The Government is committed to making sure young people have opportunities to develop their skills and benefit from youth services, which are an important partner in the strategy to tackle the root causes of serious violence.My department will continue to work closely with the Home Office on the implementation of the Serious Violence Strategy.

Youth Services

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, what plans his Department has to provide additional funding and support to youth services and projects engaging with young people at risk of violence.

Mims Davies: The Government recognises that the causes of youth crime are complex and are often tied to local factors. Local authorities allocate funding and deliver youth services in line with local need. The Government has made over £200bn available to local authorities to spend on local services over this Spending Review. The Government is committed to making sure young people have opportunities to develop their skills and benefit from youth services, which are an important partner in the strategy to tackle the root causes of serious violence. The Office for Civil Society (OCS), now based in DCMS, has spent over £667m on youth programmes and supporting youth service delivery between 2014/15 and 2017/18 - with £190m of that being spent in 2017/18. In addition, a new £200 million Youth Endowment Fund will be delivered over 10 years and will support interventions with children and young people at risk of involvement in crime and violence, will focus on those most at risk of youth violence including those displaying signs such as truancy, aggression and involvement in anti-social behaviour in order to steer them away from becoming serious offenders. My department will continue to work closely with the Home Office on the implementation of the Serious Violence Strategy.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

European Research Council and Marie Curie Fellowships

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 6 March 2019 to Question 225494 on European Research Council and Marie Curie Fellowships, if will he publish the independent advice from Sir Adrian Smith.

Chris Skidmore: Further details on the advice Sir Adrian Smith will provide will be published in due course.

Hinkley Point B Power Station: Closures

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 1 March 2019 to Question 226169 on Hinkley Point B Power Station: Closures, what plans the Government has to replace the 965 megawatts generation capacity of Hinkley Point B; and what the timescales are for implementing the replacement of that capacity.

Richard Harrington: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Hartlepool Power Station: Closures

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, pursuant to the Answer of 1 March 2019 to Question 226166 on Hartlepool Power Station: Closures, what plans the Government has to replace the 1185 MW generation capacity of Hartlepool; and what the timescales are for the replacement of that capacity.

Richard Harrington: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Charging Points: West Midlands

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what funding has been allocated to the West Midlands Combined Authority for the expansion of electric vehicle charging infrastructure; and over what time period that funding has been allocated.

Richard Harrington: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

ACAS: Languages

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department has plans to make (a) the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service and (b) other services more accessible for non-English speaking workers.

Kelly Tolhurst: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Employment: Enforcement and Inspections

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether his Department plans to increase the resources allocated to labour inspection and labour law enforcement.

Kelly Tolhurst: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

European Research Council: British Nationals Abroad

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal principal investigators in receipt of European Research Council funding who are based outside the UK will qualify for the Government's Horizon 2020 underwrite if they move their research base to the UK (a) before or (b) after the date of EU exit.

Chris Skidmore: In the event of a no deal, the Government underwrite will cover the payment of awards to UK beneficiaries for all successful bids to Horizon 2020, including the European Research Council, for the lifetime of projects.Further guidance on how the underwrite will work in practice will be published in due course.

Post Office: Compensation

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what the total amount is of compensation paid from the public purse to sub-postmasters who have left the network under Post Office Ltd's network transformation programme.

Kelly Tolhurst: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Post Office: Resignations

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many sub-postmasters have conditionally resigned from the Post Office Network but are not able to leave because an alternative cannot be found which would allow them to receive the government-funded leavers payment.

Kelly Tolhurst: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Post Offices: Retail Trade

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many post offices (a) retailers operate and (b) each retailer operates.

Kelly Tolhurst: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Post Offices

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many temporary sub-postmasters are currently operating branches in (a) Scotland, (b) Wales, (c) Northern Ireland, and (d) each region of England.

Kelly Tolhurst: Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Green Belt

Sir Oliver Heald: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his letter to Conservative Members of Parliament dated 7 February 2019, what plans he has to strengthen policy on intentional unauthorised development; what the timetable is for the delivery of those plans; and if he will make a statement.

Kit Malthouse: The Government amended national planning policy in August 2015 to make intentional unauthorised development a material consideration in the determination of planning applications and appeals. In April 2018 the Government consulted on the range of powers available to local authorities, the police and landowners for dealing with unauthorised development and encampments. In our response to that consultation, published in February 2019, we committed to strengthening policy on intentional unauthorised development and will consult on proposed measures shortly. This forms part of a comprehensive package of measures announced in February 2019, which includes:stronger powers for the police to respond to unauthorised encampments;practical and financial support for local authorities to deal with unauthorised encampments;support for traveller-site provision; andsupport for the travelling community to improve life chances.

National Holocaust Memorial Centre and Learning Service

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much money has been spent from the public purse on the National Holocaust Memorial.

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what proportion of the cost to the public purse of the National Holocaust Memorial was as a result of civil servant resources.

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much and what proportion of the cost to the public purse of the National Holocaust Memorial was as a result of payments to (a) members of staff of and (b) advisers to the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: From 2015/16 to 28 February 2019, the Government has spent £5.042 million on the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre programme. £830,000 (or 16 per cent) of this was spent on civil servant staff costs, including those staff who provide support to the UK Holocaust Foundation. There are no other paid advisers to the Foundation.

High Rise Flats: Fire Prevention

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether it is his Department's policy to fund the cost of replacing faulty composite fire doors in all public and private sector high rise buildings.

James Brokenshire: My Department has worked closely with the fire door industry to ensure all affected doors have been removed from the market and has gained industry commitment that no product will return to market until it can be proven to meet the required standard, including 30-minute fire resistance on both sides of the door.We have been clear that the Glass Reinforced Polyester composite fire door industry is responsible for replacing their defective fire doors. My Department is working with the Association of Composite Door Manufacturers and wider stakeholders as the fire door industry develops its plan for repair and replacement of affected doors where required.

Social Rented Housing: Repairs and Maintenance

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the extent of financial pressure on social landlords caused by the pursuit of property disrepair claims.

James Brokenshire: The Department has made no such assessment.All registered providers of social housing must comply with the regulatory standards set by the independent Regulator of Social Housing. This requires landlords to provide a cost-effective repairs and maintenance service, that responds to the needs of tenants, offers choices, and has the objective of getting repairs and improvements right the first time.

Community Housing Fund

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to ensure the full allocation of the Community Housing Fund is allocated.

James Brokenshire: In July last year, a new Homes England programme was launched to deliver the Community Housing Fund outside London. My Department has also funded a similar programme in London, which was launched in January and will be delivered by the Greater London Authority. Community groups and local authorities in all parts of England are now able to apply for capital and revenue funding to bring community-led housing schemes forward.My Department has also made available £6 million to a consortium of the leading stakeholder groups within the community-led housing sector to expand and develop a network of professional technical advisors who will help guide community-based organisations through the process of instigating and developing local housebuilding projects. An initiative was therefore launched in February under the brand name Community Led Homes. I expect this initiative to be an important factor in helping realise the potential of the community-led housing sector and supporting the delivery of the Community Housing Fund.Work is underway within Homes England and Greater London Authority to understand the potential demand for the Community Housing Fund over the next few years.

National Holocaust Memorial Centre and Learning Service

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 16 October 2017 to Question 106036, how many of the sites considered for the UK Holocaust Memorial were first brought to the attention of the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation (a) before 7 September 2015, (b) between 7 September and 30 October 2015 inclusive and (c) after 30 October 2015.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: Prior to publishing the site specification and criteria for the location on 7 September, the sites under consideration were those referred to in Britain’s Promise to Remember . Between 7 September and 30 October 2015, a search was conducted and almost 50 sites were identified none of which were deemed to meet the published criteria. In light of this, the Foundation suggested Victoria Tower Gardens as a potential location. Following investigations into the feasibility of this site, the Foundation recommended Victoria Tower Gardens to the Government in January 2016 as the best choice of site. The then Prime Minister accepted this recommendation and announced Victoria Tower Gardens as the chosen site on Holocaust Memorial Day 2016.

National Holocaust Memorial Centre and Learning Service

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 21 December 2018 to Question 203298, on what date the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation made the decision that (a) Millbank Tower should no longer be considered as a possible site for the Holocaust Learning Centre and (b) the preferred site for the Learning Centre was Victoria Tower Gardens.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The Foundation ruled out Millbank Tower as a feasible location in November 2015. The Foundation subsequently suggested Victoria Tower Gardens as a potential location and following investigations into the feasibility of this site, recommended the site in January 2016 as the best choice of site to the Government.

National Holocaust Memorial Centre and Learning Service

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how much public money has been spent by the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation to date; what assessment he has made of the financial accountability of that Foundation; and if he will make a statement.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation is an independent advisory body. It does not have budgetary responsibility and no financial accountability assessment is therefore required.

National Holocaust Memorial Centre and Learning Service

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 21 December 2018 to Question 203303, for what reasons Royal Parks was not involved in the selection of the design for the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The Royal Parks were members of the support panel that provided technical assessments of the competition design proposals but declined an invitation to sit on the selection panel.

National Holocaust Memorial Centre and Learning Service

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 21 December 2018 to Question 203301, on what date (a) the Government and (b) the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation decided that the constraints on locating the Holocaust Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens could be overcome and that the proposed location should be confirmed.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The Foundation’s advice has consistently been that the Memorial and Learning Centre should be co-located. Information obtained through the design competition allowed Ministers to conclude that co-location would be feasible and they announced on 24 October 2017 their decision to proceed with an integrated design.

National Holocaust Memorial Centre and Learning Service

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 21 December 2018 to Question 203301, what new information available between 14 September 2016 and 24 October 2017 underlay the Government’s conclusion that the (a) technical, (b) financial, (c) planning and (d) other constraints on locating the Holocaust Learning Centre in Victoria Tower Gardens could be overcome.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: A full technical assessment of proposals from shortlisted design teams supported the conclusion that the learning centre could be successfully accommodated in Victoria Tower Gardens.

National Holocaust Memorial Centre and Learning Service

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 21 December 2018 to Question 203301, what criteria the Government used to determine whether the constraints on co-locating the Holocaust Learning Centre with the Memorial in Victoria Tower Gardens could be overcome.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: Information requested in the design brief supported the assessment that the Learning Centre should be integrated with the Memorial in Victoria Tower Gardens.

National Holocaust Memorial Centre and Learning Service

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what undertakings the Government has given the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation on the availability of land in Victoria Tower Gardens for the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre; how much land those undertakings cover; and on what dates those undertakings were given.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, who own Victoria Tower Gardens site, are supportive of our plans to build the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre. We are in discussion with them on arrangements to enable this to happen.

National Holocaust Memorial Centre and Learning Service

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, on what date (a) the Government and (b) the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation were first informed about the potential application of section 8 (1) of the London County Council (Improvements) Act 1900 to the proposed location of the Holocaust Learning Centre.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The Environmental Statement (Volume 3) submitted with the planning documents in December 2018 identifies that proposals for enlarging Victoria Tower Gardens were adopted under the London County Council (Improvements) Act 1900.

Social Rented Housing: Tenants

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what progress he has made on developing proposals for national tenant representation following his Green Paper on social housing.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to page 36 of his social housing Green Paper, if he will publish a summary of the responses to his question on whether there is a need for a stronger representation for residents at a national level.

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he has plans for a national tenant-led consultation with tenants on how to set up a national tenant body.

James Brokenshire: The Social Housing Green Paper was created through dialogue with social housing residents around the country. The Paper asks if there is a need for stronger representation of residents’ voices at both local and national levels and what more can be done to ensure that residents know about opportunities to get involved. We want to ensure a more consistent picture across the country of genuine engagement with residents, to ensure they have influence over decisions that affect their lives. We are currently analysing responses to the Social Housing Green Paper and will publish our response in due course.

Social Rented Housing: Tenants

John Healey: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to his Green Paper on social housing, what plans he has to rebalance the relationship between landlords and residents in the social housing sector.

James Brokenshire: We are analysing responses to the Green Paper and Call for Evidence on how the existing regulatory regime for social housing is operating. We expect to publish our responses in due course.

Housing Estates: Unfair Practices

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to tackle excessive fees charged to freehold homeowners by developers for maintaining common areas in housing estates.

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether his forthcoming legislation on excessive fees charged in relation to leasehold homes will also regulate charges levied on the owners of freehold homes by developers for maintaining common areas in housing estates.

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he has plans to introduce legislative proposals to replicate the provisions of the Freehold Properties (Management Charges and Shared Facilities) Bill 2017-19 introduced by the Hon Member for Bishop Auckland.

Kit Malthouse: The Government has committed to ensuring that freeholders who pay charges for the maintenance of communal areas and facilities on a private or mixed tenure estate can access equivalent rights as leaseholders to challenge their reasonableness. In addition, we have committed to protecting leaseholders who are suffering at the hands of rogue managing agents every day from unexpected costs or excessive fees for poor quality repairs.We intend to create a new statutory regime for freeholders based on the leaseholder rights contained in the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. This will ensure maintenance charges must be reasonably incurred and services provided are of an acceptable standard. We will provide freeholders with the ability to challenge the reasonableness of the charges they are required to pay towards the maintenance of communal areas and facilities at the First-tier Tribunal. We are also considering whether freeholders should have a right to change the provider of maintenance services by applying to the tribunal for the appointment of a new manager. We will bring forward legislation as soon as Parliamentary time allows.We have asked Lord Best to chair a working group to look at regulating and professionalising property agents. This includes reviewing the standards around the transparency of service charges and other fees and charges, how they are presented to consumers and putting them into a statutory code for managing agents. Lord Best’s working group will report back to Ministers later this summer.We are also looking at the future use of charges and restrictions beyond service charges – such as permission fees, administration charges and other restrictions and covenants faced by leaseholders and resident freeholders, and consider whether they should be capped or banned. We will consider this alongside Lord Bests proposals.

Leasehold: Unfair Practices

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, when he plans to bring forward legislative proposals on tackling excessive charges levied on the owners of leasehold homes.

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether the legislation he plans to bring forward to tackle excessive charges levied on leaseholders will apply to existing arrangements or only to new homes completed after the legislation comes into force.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The Government is committed to leaseholders receiving fair and transparent charges. For this reason, we asked Lord Best and his Property Agent Working Group to consider leasehold service charges. This includes reviewing the standards around the transparency of service charges and other fees and charges, how they are presented to consumers and putting them into a statutory code for managing agents, which will be beneficial to all leaseholders. We expect to receive the Working Group's recommendations this summer and we will respond with our plans later this year.

Sleeping Rough: Yorkshire and the Humber

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government,  how much has been spent on the Rough Sleeping Initiative in Yorkshire and the Humber in each month of financial year 2018-19.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: This Government is committed to reducing homelessness and rough sleeping. No one should ever have to sleep rough. That is why last summer we published the cross-government Rough Sleeping Strategy which sets out an ambitious £100 million package to help people who sleep rough now, but also puts in place the structures that will end rough sleeping once and for all. Already, this has provided over 1,750 new bed spaces and 500 staff– this means there are more people in warm beds tonight as direct result of government funding. In all, the Government has now committed over £1.2 billion to tackle homelessness and rough sleeping over the spending review period.Rough Sleeping Initiative payments are not issued monthly. Yorkshire and Humber received a total of £1,356,829 for the Rough Sleeping Initiative in 2018/19 financial year.A list of provisional local authority funding allocations can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/news/funding-allocated-for-councils-to-help-rough-sleepers.

Housing: Construction

Laura Pidcock: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the regulation of the new-build sector in relation to snagging issues.

Kit Malthouse: It is vital that as housing supply increases, the quality of new build homes improves. We expect all housing developers to deliver good quality housing, to deliver it on time, and to treat house buyers fairly.We know more needs to be done to strengthen consumer redress for purchasers of new build homes, we announced our intention for there to be a New Homes Ombudsman to protect the rights of homebuyers and hold developers to account.When Parliamentary time allows, we intend to introduce legislation to require developers of new build homes to belong to a New Homes Ombudsman, which will be underpinned in statute.We will consult on the detail of the proposed legislation to statutorily underpin a New Homes Ombudsman. This will include the approval mechanisms and standards that a New Homes Ombudsman must meet as well as whether a Code of Practice for developers should also be underpinned in legislation.

District Heating

Neil Coyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what funding the Government can provide to local councils to replace unreliable and ageing district heating systems.

Rishi Sunak: Local authorities are responsible for funding the maintenance of their district heating systems and for all maintenance of their housing stock mostly using the rental income and service charges they receive which since 2012 under Self-Financing they have been able to retain in full.In England, the Regulator of Social Housing requires registered providers to maintain their homes to the Decent Homes Standard, which says homes must have efficient heating. Homes are also required to be free of serious hazards, such as excess cold, identified using the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (HHSRS).

Social Services: Wirral

Ms Angela Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to paragraph 5.16 of the Budget 2018 Red Book, what proportion of the £410 million for adult and children's social care will be allocated to Wirral Council.

Rishi Sunak: The Department published the local authority allocations of the £410 million announced at Budget 2018 for adult and children's social care online on 29 January 2019. This is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/social-care-support-grant-final-allocations-for-2019-to-2020.

Housing: Construction

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential effect on affordable and social housing of expanding permitted development rights to include demolitions.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what comparative analysis his Department has made of the quality of housing developments brought about through (a) permitted development rights and (b) the full planning system.

Kit Malthouse: As announced in the written ministerial statement made on 13 March 2019, HCWS1408, we will continue to consider the design of a permitted development right to allow commercial buildings to be demolished and replaced with homes. We also intend to review permitted development rights for conversion of buildings to residential use in respect of the quality standard of homes delivered.

Housing: Construction

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment his Department has made of the potential effect of extending permitted development rights to include demolitions on his Department's plans to halve homelessness in this parliament.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the number of homeless families housed in temporary accommodation which has been converted into residential use through the permitted development rights process.

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the number of homes delivered through permitted development rights that have been found to not comply with building regulations in each year for which information is available.

Kit Malthouse: Permitted development rights for change of use to residential are making an important contribution to the delivery of new homes and have delivered over 46,000 homes to buy or rent in the three years to March 2018. We do not collect information on how many are sold or rented, or on who subsequently lives in them.As announced in the written ministerial statement made on 13 March 2019, HCWS1408, we will continue to consider the design of a permitted development right to allow commercial buildings to be demolished and replaced with homes. We also intend to review permitted development rights for conversion of buildings to residential use in respect of the quality standard of homes delivered.

Housing: Students

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent estimate he has made of the number of student residences which have been identified as having aluminium composite material cladding that is unlikely to meet the limited combustibility requirements set out in Building Regulations guidance; and what steps he is taking to ensure all student residences meet the requirements of that guidance.

Kit Malthouse: 62 high rise student accommodation buildings which have Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) have been identified. 28 have completed remediation with 34 yet to be remediated. Of the 34 yet to remediated, 31 have either started remediation, have plans in place, or are developing plans. MHCLG officials continue to engage with local authorities, building owners and managing agents to ensure that student buildings with ACM cladding systems are remediated as swiftly as possible.

Ministry of Defence

Saudi Arabia: Tornado Aircraft

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, on how many occasions Tornado aircraft have been returned from Saudi Arabia to the UK for maintenance or refit since March 2015.

Stuart Andrew: None.

Yemen: Military Intervention

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether UK military personnel on exchange programmes with the US Air Force are working in (a) in Yemen (b) in the skies above Yemen.

Mark Lancaster: No.

Prime Minister: Aviation

Nia Griffith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the cost to the public purse was of providing a plane on standby at RAF Northolt for use by the Prime Minister from 8 to 11 March 2019 inclusive.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The RAF did not hold an aircraft on standby at RAF Northolt for the Prime Minister over the period in question.

Warships: Deployment

Martin Docherty-Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which Royal Navy vessel or vessels acted as the designated Fleet Ready Escort from 1 January to 8 March 2019.

Mark Lancaster: There is always one Royal Navy ship that is designated as the Fleet Ready Escort (FRE), although there are always a number of Royal Navy units available in UK waters that could conduct this role depending on the tasking.Three ships were designated as the FRE between 1 January 2019 to 8 March 2019. These were the Type 23 Frigates HMS NORTHUMBERLAND, HMS ST ALBANS and HMS SUTHERLAND.

Armed Forces: Health Services

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Fourteenth Report of the Defence Committee entitled Mental Health and the Armed Forces, Part Two: The Provision of Care, published on 19 February 2019, what plans his Department has to reform the medical and mental health services provided through the (a) RAF, (b) Royal Navy and (c) Army.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Department is currently considering its formal response to the Report. This will be submitted to the House of Commons Defence Committee in April and will be made public by the Committee in due course.

Scotland Office

Scotland Office: Public Consultation

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many consultations by his Department (a) are open, (b) are closed awaiting a Government response and (c) have been initiated since 2016.

David Mundell: The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland has (a) no open consultations, (b) no consultations closed awaiting a Government response and (c) initiated no consultations since 2016.

Scotland Office: Chief Scientific Advisers

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many meetings he held with his Department’s Chief Scientific Adviser between 1 December 2018 and 28 February 2019.

David Mundell: The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland does not have its own departmental Chief Scientific Adviser. Ministers of the Department regularly meet with a wide range of officials across Whitehall on a variety of issues.

Scotland Office: Freedom of Information

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, pursuant to the Answer of 26 April 2018 to Question 136969 on Scotland Office: Freedom of Information, if he will publish the findings of his Department's review of its practices on publication of Freedom of Information responses.

David Mundell: There is no obligation to publish responses to requests made under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. The Office decided that the cost of updating the published list of responses to Freedom of Information requests since 2014 would not be proportionate to the benefits.

Scotland Office: Information Officers

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what the cost to the public purse was of his Department's communications team in each year for which information is available.

David Mundell: The Communications team costs are set out below. The Office has been resourced to enable effective engagement and communication with the public and organisations across Scotland. The final figures for the financial year 2018-19 are not yet finalised. Financial YearCost2007-08£113,2362008-09£115,3562009-10£144,0842010-11£108,4392011-12£169,3732012-13£180,9542013-14£241,6362014-15£348,8952015-16£426,2232016-17£757,8682017-18£710,337

Scotland Office: Social Media

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how much money his Department has spent on social media advertising in each month since August 2018.

David Mundell: The actual amounts committed by my Department on social media advertising in the months requested is as follows: MonthTotalAugust 2018£1,503.10September 2018£998.51October 2018£1,763.23November 2018£4,574.95December 2018£5,945.79January 2019£8,051.45February 2019£7,513.34

Department for International Trade

Foreign Investment in UK: Sports

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what estimate he has made of the proportion of foreign direct investment into the UK which is accounted for by investment in sports.

Graham Stuart: Data for foreign direct investment in sports is not collected by the Government.

Trade Agreements: Public Sector

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, if he will ensure that (a) the NHS and (b) other public services are excluded from future trade deals.

George Hollingbery: I refer the Honourable Friend for Leicester East to the answer I gave to the Member for Midlothian on 26 February 2019, UIN 224362.

Trade Agreements: Public Sector

Lesley Laird: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps he is taking to help ensure that the NHS and other public services will not be included in future trade agreements for services after the UK leaves the EU.

George Hollingbery: I refer the Honourable Friend for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath to the answer I gave to the Member for Midlothian on 26 February 2019, UIN 224362.

Trade Agreements: Public Sector

Mr Roger Godsiff: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps the Government is taking to ensure its commitment that the NHS and other public services are excluded from future trade deals is upheld.

George Hollingbery: I refer the Honourable Friend for Birmingham, Hall Green to the answer I gave to the Member for Midlothian on 26 February 2019, UIN 224362.

Exports: Advertising

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2019 to Question 229270 on Exports: Advertising, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the Exporting is Great campaign working with (a) private sector partners, and (b) a network of exporters to promote exporting.

Graham Stuart: The Exporting is GREAT campaign works closely with hundreds of UK companies and scores of partners to encourage more companies to start exporting or to export more. These partners include professional services firms, banks, major online businesses, business representative organisations and trade / professional bodies. These companies give their time freely, at no cost to the public purse beyond the resource cost required to manage and support their involvement. It is not possible to separate these specific costs from the overall Exporting is GREAT campaign costs

Music: Exports

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2019 to Question 229270 on Exports: Advertising, what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the Music Exporting Growth Scheme.

Graham Stuart: The Music Export Growth Scheme is designed to support the launch of UK music acts to international audiences through grants to UK-registered music businesses; principally independent record labels and music management companies. In the financial year to date - from 1 April 2018 to 28 February 2019 - the Music Export Growth Scheme has cost an estimated £766,000. The scheme is administered by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI).

UK Export Finance

Mr Mark Prisk: What plans he has to mark the centenary of UK Export Finance.

Graham Stuart: We will celebrate UK Export Finance’s centenary throughout the year, notably at the UK Trade & Export Finance Forum in June. I am delighted that in its centenary year UK Export Finance was awarded ‘Best Export Credit Agency’ at the 2019 International Trade Finance Awards. As the world’s first export credit agency, UK Export Finance will continue to innovate as it has done for the past 100 years.

Foreign Investment in UK

Sir David Amess: What recent assessment he has made of trends in the level of inward foreign direct investment.

Graham Stuart: With your permission Mr Speaker I will answer question 10 together with questions 13. The UK remains the top destination in Europe, and third in the world for foreign direct investment.  By the end of 2017, UK inward FDI stock levels reached £1,337bn, a record for the UK. In addition to publishing annual analysis of DIT’s FDI performance as Official Statistics, we recently published one of the most comprehensive analyses of the economic impact of FDI in the world, highlighting the benefits of FDI to the UK.

Trade Agreements

Kevin Foster: What progress his Department has made on proposals for the scrutiny of future free trade agreements.

George Hollingbery: On 28 February we published further proposals on transparency and scrutiny of FTAs. We confirmed we will publish our approach to negotiations, including objectives and initial economic analysis, and progress reports after each negotiating round. We announced our intention to work closely with a parliamentary committee to put in place measures to ensure effective parliamentary scrutiny throughout the process.

Foreign Investment in UK

David T. C. Davies: What recent assessment he has made of trends in the level of inward foreign direct investment.

Graham Stuart: With your permission Mr Speaker I will answer question 10 together with questions 13. The UK remains the top destination in Europe, and third in the world for foreign direct investment.  By the end of 2017, UK inward FDI stock levels reached £1,337bn, a record for the UK. In addition to publishing annual analysis of DIT’s FDI performance as Official Statistics, we recently published one of the most comprehensive analyses of the economic impact of FDI in the world, highlighting the benefits of FDI to the UK.

Women and Equalities

Females: Re-employment

Theresa Villiers: To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what steps she is taking to help women return to the labour market after taking a career break to fulfil caring responsibilities.

Victoria Atkins: The Returners grant fund supports women returning to work after caring for others. We have launched public sector returner programmes and grant funding to support private sector programmes. Most recently we announced £500,000 of funding to help those with additional barriers – such as those with disabilities or who have experienced domestic abuse - to re-enter labour market.

Equal Pay

Geraint Davies: What steps she is taking to help ensure that companies report accurate gender pay gap figures before the 4 April 2019 deadline.

Victoria Atkins: Organisations with 250 or more employees are required to report their gender pay gap data by 30th March, for those in the public sector, or 4th April, in the private sector.It is an employer’s legal responsibility to ensure that they report on time and that their figures are accurate. Detailed guidance is available on the Acas website and GOV.UK to help employers with their calculations.The Equality and Human Rights Commission has the power to take enforcement action against employers that breach the regulations.In 2018, the EHRC commenced enforcement action against 100 employers suspected of publishing inaccurate figures. The EHRC enforcement found that they were a result of errors, rather than a deliberate attempt to mislead. They have worked closely with employers to identify and correct errors; all of whom have now either verified their figures or identified and corrected calculation errors.

Equality

Tommy Sheppard: What steps she is taking to maintain equalities protections in law after the UK leaves the EU.

Penny Mordaunt: The UK has some of the strongest anti-discrimination laws in Europe; not only will leaving the EU not change this, but we are committed to ensuring workers’ rights – including anti-discrimination rights - keep pace with the changing needs of the labour market.

Department for Transport

Large Goods Vehicles: EU Countries

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many UK hauliers travelled to and from other EU countries in the last 12 months.

Jesse Norman: The information requested is not held by the Department. In 2018, 347,000 journeys were made by UK Registered HGVs to the European Union, of which 83,000 were to the Republic of Ireland. These figures exclude crossings of the Irish Land Border

Large Goods Vehicles: EU Countries

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many ECMT permits are available in the current window for applications.

Chris Grayling: ECMT permits are unlikely to be needed because an EU measure on basic road connectivity is about to be adopted which would allow for the majority of road haulage journeys currently undertaken by UK hauliers to continue during 2019 without the need for permits. The applications from the current ECMT window will be combined with the unsuccessful applications from the first window. For these applications, there are an additional 626 annual permits available. If the EU proposal passes and we only need permits for specific types of journey, we may not allocate all 626 and instead use them for the purposes of cross trade or transit to third countries.

Large Goods Vehicles: EU Countries

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency has made of the number of ECMT permit applications it will receive during the current window for applications.

Chris Grayling: The Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) has opened the current window for ECMT permit applications at the request of the haulage industry. This is to allow operators whose vehicles are not Euro VI emissions-compliant to apply for ECMT permits, as they were excluded from the first window. It is not possible to say how many applications the DVSA will receive.

Large Goods Vehicles: EU Countries

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many applications for ECMT permits during the last window for applications were (a) received and (b) successful.

Chris Grayling: ECMT permits are unlikely to be needed because an EU measure on basic road connectivity is about to be adopted which would allow for the majority of road haulage journeys currently undertaken by UK hauliers to continue during 2019 without the need for permits. (a) There were applications for 11,392 permits from 1,991 operator licence holders.(b) To date 984 permits have been successfully allocated.For those areas where ECMT permits may still be needed, the Government has secured additional ECMT permits, including some for Euro V vehicles, and DVSA have opened a new application window.

Roads: Freight

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what bilateral agreements the UK has with the Republic of Ireland with respect to hauliers; and whether hauliers will be required to have ECMT permits to travel to the Republic of Ireland after the UK leaves the EU.

Chris Grayling: The Government’s priority remains to secure a withdrawal agreement with the European Union which maintains current, liberalised, permit-free arrangements.An EU measure on basic road connectivity is about to be adopted which would allow for the majority of road haulage journeys currently undertaken by UK hauliers to continue during 2019 without the need for permits. The measure would also apply to haulage operations on the Isle of Ireland. The EU measure would remove the immediate need for bilateral agreements, although we continue to prepare for such arrangements with Member States in case the Regulation is not adopted in time. This approach is in line with the joint report published in December 2017 by the UK and the EU. It makes clear our steadfast commitment to upholding the Belfast Agreement in full. Specifically, preserving cross-border cooperation on transport in full.

Railways: Franchises

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what railway franchises currently operate under a direct award contract; and for each such franchise when the contract (a) become live and (b) is due to expire.

Andrew Jones: Details of direct award contracts for rail franchises are published on the Public Register of Rail Passenger Franchise Agreements, which is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/public-register-of-rail-passenger-franchise-agreements

Eurotunnel

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 19 February 2019 to Question 221788, what the final legal costs are with respect to the court proceedings and the subsequent settlement agreed with Eurotunnel.

Chris Grayling: We are still in the process of scrutinising the figures provided by our specialist legal advisers.

Brittany Ferries and DFDS

Alan Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Written Statement of 7 January 2019, Haulage Update, HCWS 1233, how much and what proportion of the monies awarded to (a) Brittany Ferries and (b) DFDS for the contingency transport provisions outlined in that Written Statement will be retained by the public purse in the event that the UK agrees a withdrawal agreement with the EU.

Chris Grayling: The agreements with both Freight Operators are still live, and as a responsible Government we have a duty to prepare for all scenarios. In the event that a deal is implemented the Department will review its options and exercise its rights where appropriate, noting that the amount retained will be dependent on the specific scenario at the time.

High Speed Two

Dame Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the average length of time is for HS2 Ltd to answer complaints.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: HS2 Ltd publishes a community engagement progress report on a six monthly basis, which includes data on complaints received by HS2 Ltd. The first public progress report covering the period January to June 2018 was published in Autumn 2018, and can be found at: https://www.hs2.org.uk/documents/community-engagement-progress-report-january-to-june-2018/

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Dame Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many claims have been received under the Small Claims Scheme for HS2; what the status is of each claim; and where what the remedy awarded was for each approved claim.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: This is a matter for HS2 Ltd.

High Speed 2 Railway Line

Dame Cheryl Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many complaints have been made for noise disturbance from HS2 works in each of the past two years.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: HS2 Ltd publishes a community engagement progress report on a six monthly basis, which includes data on complaints received by HS2 Ltd. The first public progress report covering the period January to June 2018 was published in Autumn 2018, and can be found at: https://www.hs2.org.uk/documents/community-engagement-progress-report-january-to-june-2018/

Motor Vehicles: West Midlands

Liam Byrne: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many privately owned vehicles are registered in the West Midlands metro area; and how many of those vehicles are electric vehicles.

Jesse Norman: At the end of September 2018, there were 1,210,559 vehicles registered to a private keeper at an address in the West Midlands Metropolitan County, of which 2,903 were battery electric vehicles, 885 were plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, 9,959 were hybrid electric vehicles, and 121 were range-extended electric vehicles.

Driving: Autism

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 11 March 2019 to Question 228749 on Driving: Autism, what estimate he has made of the number of drivers with autism affected by the guidance on the DVLA website between 15 February and 4 March.

Jesse Norman: The DVLA is writing to 246 drivers who have contacted them since 15 February to confirm whether their condition affects their driving. Medical assessments will be only be undertaken in cases where it does.

Blue Badge Scheme

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to implement the recommendations in the document entitled, Blue Badge consultation: summary of responses and government response, published on 29 July 2018.

Jesse Norman: The Department for Transport is currently developing guidance, drawing on expertise from medical and healthcare professionals, as well as various disability organisations and local authorities, so that authorities will be able to assess applications under the expanded eligibility criteria for non-physical and hidden disabilities. The guidance will be published following forthcoming revisions of the statutory regulations, planned for the end of April. The changes will come into force at a later date, to allow time for local authorities to make appropriate arrangements once the guidance is published.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Intergovernmental Equal Rights Coalition

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he plans to expand the membership of the Equal Rights Coalition among (a) African, (b) Asian and (c) other countries during the Government’s term as co-chair of that coalition in 2019-20.

Mark Field: ​The Equal Rights Coalition (ERC) was set up to develop the ways in which governments could coordinate their diplomatic efforts, share information, and work together at the international level to achieve LGBT equality. As ERC co-chair we are keen to expand the current 40-strong membership to include any country seeking to work with existing ERC members to promote and protect the human rights of LGBT people globally.

Indigenous Peoples

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his international counterparts for the rights of indigenous peoples to be embedded into the proposed International Treaty on Human Rights and Transnational Corporations.

Mark Field: ​I have not made any such representations. The British Government regards the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) as the authoritative global standard for preventing and addressing the risk of adverse human rights impacts with business. The United Kingdom has a strong legal and policy framework to promote and protect human rights for all individuals, including indigenous people. We continue to work overseas and through international institutions such as the United Nations to improve the situation of those facing discrimination. In 2007, the UK supported the adoption of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and in May 2017 the European Union’s Foreign Affairs Council adopted conclusions on indigenous peoples.

China: Ethnic Groups

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his Chinese counterpart on the continued mass detention and mistreatment of Uyghur Muslims in western China.

Mark Field: We have serious concerns about the human rights situation in Xinjiang and the Chinese Government’s deepening crackdown; including credible reports that over one million Uyghur Muslims have been held in re-education camps, and reports of widespread surveillance and restrictions targeted at ethnic minorities.Ministers and senior officials have been raising our concerns directly with the Chinese authorities for some time, and will continue to do so. Lord Ahmad stressed the UK’s concerns about Xinjiang during his address at the 40th session of the UN Human Rights Council in February 2019. I raised our concerns about Xinjiang with Vice Minister Guo Yezhou during my visit to China on 22 July 2018. The Foreign Secretary also raised our concerns about the region with Chinese State Councillor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi during his visit to China on 30 July 2018.During China’s Universal Periodic Review at the UN Human Rights Council on 6 November 2018, the UK made a statement which described our concern about the treatment of ethnic minorities in China, including Uyghurs. We issued a specific recommendation, calling on China to not only implement the recommendations by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) on Xinjiang, but also to allow the UN to monitor the implementation.Following the Universal Periodic Review, Lord Ahmad issued a statement where he said: “I am very concerned about the human rights situation in Xinjiang, including the re-education camps and the widespread surveillance and restrictions targeted at ethnic minorities, particularly the Uyghurs. The UK and many of our international partners have made clear during China’s UPR that this is a priority issue. We recommended that China should implement CERD recommendations in Xinjiang and allow the UN to monitor implementation.”​

Israa al-Ghomgham

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his Saudi Arabian counterpart on the continued detention and threatened execution of women’s rights activist, Israa al-Ghomgham.

Alistair Burt: ​We are closely monitoring Ms Ghomgham's case and those of other activists. We continue to raise our concerns on human rights with the Saudi authorities in private. It is a longstanding policy of the British Government to oppose the death penalty in all circumstances, as a matter of principle.

Saudi Arabia: Religious Freedom

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his Saudi Arabian counterpart on the continued detention and threatened execution of Abbas al-Hassan and eleven other individuals threatened with execution for exercising their rights to freedom of religion.

Alistair Burt: ​We are closely monitoring these cases. We regularly raise our human rights concerns with the Saudi Arabian authorities using a range of Ministerial and diplomatic channels of communication, including our Ambassador. It is a longstanding policy of the British Government to oppose the death penalty, in all circumstances, as a matter of principle.

Egypt: Human Rights

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many human rights activists his Department estimates are currently in detention in Egypt; and what representations he has made to his Egyptian counterpart on this issue.

Alistair Burt: ​We are aware of reports of the detention of large numbers of human rights activists in Egypt, although there are no reliable statistics. Egypt is a Foreign and Commonwealth Office Human Rights Priority Country and the UK regularly raises concerns about human rights with the Egyptian Government, both in public and in private. On 18 September we issued a statement at the UN Human Rights Council in which we raised specific concerns about the arrests of activists. Our Ambassador to Cairo also raised our human rights concerns with the Egyptian Assistant Foreign Minister for Human Rights on 21 February.

Burma: Rohingya

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his Bangladeshi counterparts since the recent elections in that country to ensure that the Bangladeshi Government remains committed to repatriations of Rohingya refugees to Myanmar on a voluntary basis.

Mark Field: I wrote to State Minister Alam on 10 January and the Foreign Secretary correspnded with Foreign Minister Momen on 22 January. We re-emphasised the importance we place on the Government of Bangladesh’s stated commitment to voluntary, safe and dignified return for the Rohingya to their homeland in Burma. We also emphasised the importance of planning for a longer term and more sustainable response to the Rohingya crisis.The Prime Minister also wrote to Prime Minister Hasina on 29 January, welcoming the Government of Bangladesh’s restated commitment to voluntary, safe and dignified return for the Rohingya.​

Masood Azhar

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his counterparts on the United Nations Security Council on the formal designation of Masood Azhar as a global terrorist.

Mark Field: The UK continues to support with other partner the listing of Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) leader, Masood Azhar, at the UN, as we did in 2016 and 2017. We are working closely with international partners, including members of the UN Security Council, to pursue this listing. JeM are already listed by the UN and have been proscribed in the UK since 2001; in addition, JeM has been proscribed in Pakistan since 2002.

Israel: Gaza

John Lamont: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on (a) Gazan patients allegedly using medical permits to smuggle weapons or explosives into Israel at the behest of Hamas and (b) the extent of fraudulent applications for medical permits by Gazans.

Alistair Burt: ​While we are aware of the background behind the question, we have not specifically raised this issue with the Israeli Government. We strongly condemn all acts of terrorism and call upon Hamas and other terrorist groups to permanently end their incitement and rocket fire against Israel. We are also aware that Israeli restrictions severely restrict the movement of medical professionals and patients in Gaza, hampering the provision of quality health services. Our Embassy to Israel regularly raises the matter of medical permits with the Israeli authorities.

Middle East: Peace Negotiations

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has received representations on the sharing by the United States Administration of the draft proposals in its Middle East Peace Plan with (a) Egypt, (b) Jordan and (c) the Palestinian Authority.

Alistair Burt: ​We welcome the further information provided by the US, including at the Warsaw Summit on 13-14 February, on the likely timing that the plan will be released. We continue to discuss the UK's long-standing positions on the Middle East Peace Process with the US and other partners, including the Egyptians, Jordanians and Palestinians.

Gaza: Israel

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the effect of the recent violent protests and Israeli military exercises on stability in the region of the Gaza border.

Alistair Burt: We remain very concerned about the situation in Gaza. We regularly raise our concerns about Gaza with the Israeli authorities, urging them to work together with the Palestinian Authority and Egypt to see long-term improvements. We are clear that that Israel has the right to protect itself, as it is plain that Hamas and its operatives have exploited the recent protests for their own benefit. We also remain concerned about the impact of the humanitarian situation, and we continue to raise concerns about Israel's conduct of the occupation.

Iraq: Trials

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his Iraqi counterpart on the judicial process for the trial of non-combative civilians living in Daesh-controlled areas in that country, and the sentences handed down to those people.

Alistair Burt: The British Government has regularly raised human rights concerns relating to the judicial process for persons suspected of support for Daesh with the Iraqi governmental and judicial authorities. In these discussions, including with the Iraqi Supreme Judicial Council and the Iraqi Chief Justice, we have reiterated the importance of due process and our opposition to the death penalty. Our Embassy in Baghdad has also encouraged and facilitated contacts between the Iraqi Supreme Judicial Council and the Royal Courts of Justice, who are looking at ways to provide support and capacity-building to their Iraqi counterparts.

Iraq: USA

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his US counterpart on the absence of a meeting between President Trump and representatives of the Iraqi government during the US President's recent visit to that country.

Alistair Burt: ​We have made no representations on this issue, which is a matter for the Governments of the United States and Iraq.

Iraq: Economic Situation and Energy

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the effect on Iraq’s (a) economy and (b) energy supply of that country's compliance with US sanctions against Iran.

Alistair Burt: ​There has been to date little impact on Iraq's economy or energy supply as a result of US sanctions against Iran. Trade between Iran and Iraq continues in non-dollar currencies to allow the import and export of goods. Iraq continues to import electricity and gas from Iran as permitted under a waiver provided by the US Government.

Iraq: Kurds

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent steps he has taken to de-escalate tensions between the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Iraqi authorities to reduce the risk of any further outbreak of violence in that region.

Alistair Burt: ​We continue to encourage improved relations between the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) and the Government of Iraq. I visited Iraq in January and held useful discussions with both Iraqi and KRG leaders. I welcomed steps towards normalisation between Baghdad and Erbil, including the reopening of the Kirkuk oil pipeline last November and the recent budget agreement between the KRG and Government of Iraq.

Iraq: Explosives

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent progress has been made on the clearance of explosive devices from roads and towns in previously Daesh-held areas of Iraq; and how many civilians have so far been able to return to their homes as a result of that work.

Alistair Burt: ​Important progress is being made to clear explosive devices from previously Daesh-held areas of Iraq. In 2018, the UN Mine Action Service (UNMAS) cleared over 2,000 explosive traps and 16,500 explosives from the country. The UK, one of the largest contributors to demining efforts in Iraq, has contributed £29.75 million to UNMAS since 2015, including £5 million announced in January 2019 to support six explosive clearance teams in Sinjar province. UK support in this area, combined with our wider humanitarian and stabilisation efforts in Iraq, has contributed to creating the conditions for over 4 million internally displaced persons to return home since 2015.

Yemen: Armed Conflict

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the £4.5 million of arms exports to Saudi Arabia authorised between July and September last year were intended for use in the war in Yemen.

Alistair Burt: In respect of the period of July to September last year, the value of military and non-military licences issued for equipment to Saudi Arabia was £4.5 million. The value of military licences issued was £1.6 million. All export licence applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria. Details of export licences issued to Saudi Arabia are available in the official statistics published by the Department for International Trade on www.gov.uk/government/collections/strategic-export-controls-licensing-data

Journalism and Press Freedom

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made at the United Nations on the potential merits of the creation of a UN Special Rapporteur with responsibility for monitoring the protection of journalists and press freedom.

Mark Field: The UK is strongly committed to freedom of the press and the protection of journalists. My Right Honourable Friend the Foreign Secretary has launched an international campaign on media freedom and will be co-hosting with Canada an international conference on 10-11 July to shine a global spotlight on these issues. As part of the campaign, we are exploring how we can reinforce and add value to existing mechanisms, including those of the UN and other international organisations. We most recently discussed the idea of a UN Special Rapporteur or Special Representative for the protection of journalists and media freedom with Under-Secretary General Menendez on February 7th. Ministers are exploring with the UN Secretary General how the UN system might best be strengthened, including whether the creation of such a role might add weight to global efforts.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his counterpart in Myanmar on the continued incarceration of Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo; and what response he has received as a result of those representations.

Mark Field: ​We continue to call for the immediate release of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo. Journalists must be allowed to work freely and without intimidation. The Foreign Secretary raised the issue with Aung San Suu Kyi on his visit to Burma in September. I have raised the case on a number of occasions with my Burmese counterparts.

Human Rights: Females

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what diplomatic steps his Department has taken to help protect women human rights defenders around the world from (a) death threats, (b) attacks, (c) defamation campaigns, (d) judicial harassment and (e)  criminalisation of their work.

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the report on the situation if women human rights defenders, published by the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of Human Rights Defenders in January 2019, if his Department will take further steps to (a) protect women human rights defenders who are at risk and (b) help ensure a safe and enabling working environment for women human rights defenders.

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans he has to develop a cross-governmental approach to support and help protect women human rights defenders.

Mark Field: ​The UK is committed to supporting all human rights defenders, including women human rights defenders. It is a key element of our work to promote universal human rights. The FCO and DFID work closely together to support human rights defenders. In our statement at the Human Rights Council in response to the Special Rapporteur's report on Human Rights Defenders, the UK acknowledged the stark challenges facing women human rights defenders. In November 2018, we co-sponsored a new UN resolution on Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association which urged States to 'pay particular attention to the safety and protection of women and women human rights defenders from acts of intimidation and harassment'. In 2017, we co-sponsored the UN resolution on Human Rights Defenders to strengthen support for them and the work they do. Throughout 2019 our network of embassies and high commissions will continue to work with human rights defenders, using the UK Guidelines to inform their work. This includes taking into account groups who may face additional risks, such as women and those defending the rights of women. Our work to support human rights defenders can include attending trials, raising cases privately with the host government, making public statements, and lobbying for safe and open space for civil society and human rights defenders to operate. The FCO believes that a decentralised, flexible approach through the Guidelines allows UK diplomats to apply them in the local context of the country to which they are accredited.

Press Freedom

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that female journalists are consulted on the UK's media freedom campaign; and what steps his Department is taking to promote that campaign at the London conference on media freedom in July 2019.

Mark Field: Female journalists in some parts of the world face the double burden of being attacked for their journalism and being attacked because of their gender. We are consulting extensively with civil society, journalists (with a special focus on female journalists), government partners and academia on the design of the Media Freedom Campaign, taking special note of the increased vulnerability of women journalists. We are exploring options for highlighting the increased risks faced by female journalists at the London conference in July 2019. We are also working with our embassies overseas to increase the spotlight on specific cases of abuse of female journalists' rights.

Journalism: Females

Ann Clwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to (a) develop protection mechanisms and (b) provide emergency protection funds for female journalists at risk.

Mark Field: The UK is committed to the promotion of media freedom and the protection of journalists, including female journalists, who face particular challenges. We have launched a campaign to shine a global spotlight on the subject of media freedom and to increase the costs to those who target journalists for their work. We have been liaising with multilateral, bilateral and civil society partners to explore the effectiveness of the protection mechanisms and funds that already exist, and consider how we can best support and enhance these efforts. This includes consulting with our partners and with female journalists on the steps we can take to minimise the added risks faced by women working in this field and to provide increased protections for them. We have also supported women journalists through our ongoing project work. Through the Magna Carta Fund for Human Rights and Democracy the FCO supports the promotion and protection of human rights, democracy and the rule of law by funding numerous projects overseas. This includes funding for various programmes promoting media freedom. In addition, we have supported media development training for Syrian journalists in exile through International Media Support and the Guardian Foundation. These initiatives are aimed at strengthening local capacity for investigative journalism and in support of public narratives on accountability. This support also has a focus on gender sensitive reporting and representation.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Chief Scientific Advisers

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many meetings he held with his Department’s Chief Scientific Adviser between 1 December 2018 and 28 February 2019.

Mark Field: FCO Minister's offices have regular meetings with the Department's Chief Scientific Adviser, and her Deputy. I most recently met with the Chief Scientific Adviser on 16 October 2018.

Abu Bakar Ba'asyir

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to his counterpart in Indonesia on the proposed early release of Abu Bashir.

Mark Field: The 2002 Bali bombings remain fresh in the mind of many in the UK, with the high death toll including 23 British nationals and many other foreign tourists and Indonesians. Following media reports about the possible release of Abu Bakar Ba’asyir, the UK sought urgent clarification from the Indonesian authorities. We understand that the prospect of early release has receded. Our Embassy in Jakarta will continue to monitor developments and to urge the Indonesian government to uphold the rule of law.​

Sudan: Human Rights

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Sudanese counterpart on human rights in that country, and if he will make a statement.

Harriett Baldwin: ​I spoke to Sudanese Foreign Minister Dirdiri on 23 January and 13 March to express the strength of our ongoing concern at the use of violence, the decision to declare a state of emergency and to urge the government to respect the rights of the Sudanese people. In addition, I raised our concern regarding the response to protests in Sudan, including the use of lethal force, with the Sudanese Foreign Minister and emphasised the importance of respect for the rule of law and for human rights. Most recently the Sudanese ambassador was summoned to the Foreign Office on 7 March to register the depth of our ongoing concern at recent declarations which further erode human rights. We remain deeply concern at the human rights implication of the Government of Sudan's response to protests. We continue to monitor the situation and consider the best means to support human rights improvements in Sudan, including through official engagement, public messaging, and international fora.

Algeria: Politics and Government

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the level of political stability in Algeria; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: We are aware of the ongoing demonstrations in Algeria and President Bouteflika’s announcement that elections are to be postponed. We are following developments.

Middle East: Migrant Camps

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of UK citizens living in refugee camps in (a) Iraq, (b) Jordan, (c) Lebanon, (d) Syria and (e) Turkey.

Alistair Burt: We have made no assessment of the number of UK citizens in refugee camps in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and Turkey.

Ilois: Finance

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 11 October 2018 to Question 170339 on Ilois Finance, how much of the £40 million fund for Chagossians has been allocated to date; to whom that funding has been allocated; and for what purposes that money has been allocated.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​£312,899.37 of the £40 million fund has been spent to date, largely on implementing an expanded programme of Heritage Visits for Chagossians to the British Indian Ocean Territory. Officials are continuing work to identify areas for broader support package funding. The bulk of the funding will be allocated once we have a clear assessment of need, and an agreed mechanism for effectively and fairly disbursing funds in collaboration with the Chagossian communities in the UK, Seychelles and Mauritius.

British Indian Ocean Territory: Environment Protection

Mike Kane: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Chagos Conservation Trust has returned any unspent funds that were provided by his Department for the purposes of the Chagossian Outreach Programme; and how much in total (a) was and (b) remains to be provided for that programme.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Chagos Environmental Outreach Project (later named Connect Chagos) ran from March 2012 to December 2015. In total just over £330,000 was provided by the British Indian Ocean Territory Administration to the Chagos Conservation Trust and Zoological Society for London for the delivery of the programme. At the end of the programme, an underspend of £16,745 was reported. The British Indian Ocean Territory Administration is in discussions with the Chagos Conservation Trust about options for the use of this underspend. No additional funding remains to be provided.

South Sudan: Human Rights

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his counterparts in the African Union and the Government of South Sudan on the UN Human Rights Council report on the human rights situation in South Sudan.

Harriett Baldwin: We are appalled by the findings of the UN Commission on Human Rights’ report on South Sudan, published in February, which for the second year running concludes that many of the abuses and violations reported could amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity. Our efforts to support change in South Sudan primarily focus on maximising the chances of success of the peace agreement signed in September 2018, as without progress on this there is little hope for improvement. As part of this we have frequently urged African Union members, particularly from the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development, to ensure that the parties to the agreement meet their commitments to deliver sustainable peace, and to ensure accountability for those who work against it. In addition, through our diplomatic engagement, we urge the Government of South Sudan to implement its peace commitments and to address the human rights situation. This has included recent engagement in Juba and Geneva where we have raised the findings of the report as part of discussions regarding the renewal of the mandate for the UN Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan.

Sri Lanka: Human Rights

Mr Ranil Jayawardena: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the Sri Lankan Government's progress towards meeting the objectives set by the UN Human Rights Council in resolutions 30/1 and 34.1 on promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka.

Mark Field: ​The UK continues to encourage and support Sri Lanka to deliver the commitments it made to the UN Human Rights Council through Resolutions 30/1 and 34/1. We firmly believe that this is the best framework for establishing truth and to achieve justice and lasting reconciliation. I have made these points personally to Sri Lankan Ministers, and I welcome the announcement by the Government of Sri Lanka on 6 March that it will co-sponsor a further resolution at the current Council session.The UK welcomed the Annual Report of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights on 21 March 2018, which assessed progress made by the Sri Lankan government in the implementation of UN Human Rights Council resolution 30/1 and 34/1. The report found that the Government of Sri Lanka has taken some steps to address human rights concerns and to introduce more democratic and accountable government.These include the return of some military-held civilian land, the establishment of an Office of Missing Persons and the ratification of the Convention on Enforced Disappearances. However, as I made clear to a range of senior Ministers on my visit to Colombo in October, and to Finance Minister Marapana in January, more needs to be done. I have urged further progress on these issues, and encouraged the Government of Sri Lanka to deliver meaningful devolution through constitutional reform, and to establish credible mechanisms for transitional justice.The United Kingdom has made a long-term commitment to improving human rights in Sri Lanka. The British High Commission in Colombo is in regular contact with the Government of Sri Lanka and other key stakeholders to encourage and support the implementation of Resolution 30/1.

Department for International Development

Syria: Internally Displaced People

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what funding her Department has allocated to  support internally displaced persons in (a) Rubkan camp and (b) Northern Syria.

Alistair Burt: The UK remains at the forefront of the humanitarian response to the Syria crisis. To date, the UK has pledged £2.81 billion, including £1.03 billion for humanitarian support inside Syria. UK aid is providing life-saving support to millions of displaced civilians, including those in acute need across northern Syria and in Rukban camp. In financial year 2018/19, DFID has allocated over £40 million for Northeast Syria. We will also expect to provide approximately £87 million for activities in Northwest Syria. Our support in Idlib governorate alone has meant that approximately 572,000 people were provided with access to safe water and 500,000 people received medical consultations between January and June 2018. Between December 2016 and November 2018, DFID provided £4.14 million for essential humanitarian assistance, including water and health services, to those in acute need in Rukban camp. Despite the regime’s continued and deliberate obstruction of lifesaving aid, DFID funded partners provided safe water and hygiene kits to 50,000 people and vaccines to 5,000 children under the age of 5 in 2018.

Yemen: Disease Control and  Humanitarian Aid

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how the Government's programmes to increase humanitarian relief and disease prevention in Yemen will be delivered in Houthi-controlled areas.

Alistair Burt: The UK continues to show leadership in responding to the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, with the Prime Minister recently committing £200 million of support for the 2019/2020 financial year. This funding will meet the immediate food requirements of over 3.8 million Yemenis for a month and brings the total UK commitment to Yemen to £770 million since the conflict began in 2015.The UK only channels support through organisations with a strong record of delivering and monitoring assistance, such as UN agencies and international NGOs. These organisations continue to deliver aid in Houthi controlled areas, where the majority of Yemen’s population live, with the UN Humanitarian Coordinator working tirelessly to improve aid delivery and ensure those most in need are being reached.Humanitarian actors often report facing bureaucratic obstacles, including waits for visas and multiple permissions to travel through governorate and district-level checkpoints. The UK continues to call urgently on all parties to facilitate safe, rapid, and unhindered access for both the humanitarian response and commercial supplies.

Palestinians: Terrorism

Guto Bebb: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether she has held discussions with Palestinian officials on recent reports that the Palestinian Authority will reduce the salaries of its public sector workers but continue paying salaries for the families of martyrs, wounded or prisoners.

Alistair Burt: DFID officials are aware of the Palestinian Authority’s (PA) plans to make partial salary payments to public sector officials earning 2,000 NIS (£425) or above a month. We are in the process of assessing the implications for PEGASE beneficiaries (who are vetted health and education public servants) including through discussions with the PA. The UK continues to support a stable PA which can act as an effective partner for peace with Israel, through financial assistance that exclusively supports the salaries of vetted public servants in the West Bank in the health and education sectors. This move does not affect the robust financial safeguards that ensure UK financial aid only reaches intended beneficiaries, meaning aid is not allocated to Prisoner or Martyr payments. The UK government continues to press the PA to reform the prisoner payments system to become more needs-based, transparent and affordable.

Department for International Development: Chief Scientific Advisers

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many meetings she held with her Department’s Chief Scientific Adviser between 1 December 2018 and 28 February 2019.

Harriett Baldwin: The DFID Chief Scientific Adviser has not met with the Secretary of State during this three month period but did meet once with me.The Chief Scientific Adviser continues to provide all Ministers with regular written submissions and briefings on DFID science and research activities.

Department for International Development: Procurement

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, with reference to the guidance entitled, Procurement policy note 03/14: promoting tax compliance, how many suppliers were allocated contracts by her Department as a result of complying with (a) one and (b) more than one of the mitigating circumstances after failing the tax compliance questions.

Harriett Baldwin: All DFID contracts awarded in FY 17/18 and FY 18/19, suppliers were fully compliant with Procurement Policy Note 03/14: promoting tax compliance. Prior to 2017 such information was not centrally held.

Department for International Development: Procurement

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how many suppliers were excluded from bidding for contracts due to failing the meet the criteria specified in Procurement Policy Note 03/14 by (a) Government Department and (b) year since 2014.

Harriett Baldwin: In FY 17/18 and FY 18/19, no suppliers were excluded from bidding for contracts due to failing to meet the criteria specified in Procurement Policy Note 03/14. Prior to 2017 such information was not centrally held.

Syria: Internally Displaced People

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment she has made of the humanitarian situation in the al-Hol refugee camp in Syria; and what steps her Department is taking to support refugees within that camp.

Alistair Burt: We remain immensely concerned about the dreadful humanitarian situation in Al Hol camp in Northeast Syria as the camp population has grown to over 65,000 people since December 2018. The prevailing harsh winter conditions in Northeast Syria have so far resulted in the deaths of at least 97 people, two-thirds of whom were children under the age of five. Rapid increases in the camp population have severely strained the camp infrastructure and services, with shelter, water and sanitation, health and protection services identified by the UN as the priority areas. DFID remains committed to helping to alleviate the suffering of those in Al Hol. In 2018/19, the UK has allocated over £40 million to address basic-life saving needs across Northeast Syria where Al Hol camp is located. UK funded partners are doing all they can to support those affected by providing vital services including healthcare and shelter. Reaching those who most need our support remains an issue across Syria. The UK is therefore pressing for immediate and unfettered access to reach those in desperate need.

Department for Education

European University Institute

Clive Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 26 February 2019 to Question 224488, what the evidential basis is the statement in that answer that the UK’s EU membership is inextricably linked to its current membership of the European University Institute Convention and that the UK’s membership of the EUIC will automatically cease on 29 March 2019.

Chris Skidmore: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Schools: Visual Impairment

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will take steps to require local authorities to ensure that school staff who teach young people with vision impairment have appropriate training from a specialist.

Nick Gibb: To teach a class of pupils with vision impairment, a teacher must hold a mandatory qualification, in addition to qualified teacher status. The Department is currently reviewing the educational outcomes of the mandatory qualifications for teachers of classes with vision impairment, to ensure they reflect the changing needs of the education system.The Children and Families Act 2014 requires local authorities to work with parents, young people, and schools and colleges to keep the provision for children and young people with special educational needs and disability (SEND) under review and to consider carefully how best to meet the needs of children and young people in their area, including those with vision impairment. To support local authorities, the Department has announced an additional £250 million high needs funding, over this year and the next. This will bring the total allocated for high needs next year to £6.3 billion. In addition, £3.4 million is being provided for 2018 to 2020 to equip the school workforce to deliver high quality teaching across all types of SEND, including vision impairment.

Schools: Finance

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will meet representatives of the campaign group WorthLess? to discuss school funding.

Nick Gibb: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State meets regularly with teachers, head teachers and representative groups to discuss education issues, including school funding. On the specific group mentioned, I have met with them, as has my noble Friend, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the School System. Following those meetings, representatives of the group have also met with senior Department officials.

Headteachers

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many times he has met representatives of school head teachers since he took office.

Nick Gibb: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State meets representatives of school head teachers regularly, including the National Association of Head Teachers, Primary Head Teacher Reference Groups, and Secondary Head Teacher Reference Groups.

Schools: Finance

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent discussions he has had with head teachers on the funding situation in all state schools.

Nick Gibb: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State meets regularly with head teachers of schools to discuss issues including funding.

Classroom Assistants: West Yorkshire

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many teaching assistants have been employed in primary schools in West Yorkshire in each year since 2010.

Nick Gibb: The following table provides the full-time equivalent (FTE) number of teaching assistants in state funded nursery and primary schools in West Yorkshire and England in each November, from 2011 to 2017. West YorkshireEngland2011[1]7,439136,8762012[2]7,725146,6602013[3]8,237156,23820148,399166,2302015[4]9,043174,5332016[5]9,125177,69220178,972176,242Source: School Workforce CensusWest Yorkshire includes Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds and Wakefield local authorities. Comparable information for 2010 is not available.[1] 2011 figures for West Yorkshire exclude 14 out of 735 nursery and primary schools that did not provide a return for teaching assistant numbers.[2] 2012 figures for West Yorkshire exclude 10 out of 734 nursery and primary schools that did not provide a return for teaching assistant numbers.[3] 2013 figures for West Yorkshire exclude 5 out of 734 nursery and primary schools that did not provide a return for teaching assistant numbers.[4] 2015 figures for West Yorkshire exclude 1 out of 729 nursery and primary schools that did not provide a return for teaching assistant numbers.[5] 2016 figures for West Yorkshire exclude 5 out of 728 nursery and primary schools that did not provide a return for teaching assistant numbers.

Pupils: Sanitary Products

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent estimate his Department has made of the annual cost of providing free sanitary products to all girls in secondary schools in England.

Nadhim Zahawi: No one should be held back from reaching their potential because of their gender or background. That is why my right hon. Friend, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in his Spring Statement on 13 March 2019 that the Department for Education will lead a scheme to provide free sanitary products in all secondary schools and colleges in England. The annual cost of this provision will depend on the specific nature of the delivery approach and we will refine costs as part of our policy development.

Special Educational Needs: Finance

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to Answer of 4 March 2019 to Question 228139 on Special Educational Needs: Finance, whether he plans to launch his Department's call for evidence looking into the financial incentives in the SEND system by 14 June 2019.

Nadhim Zahawi: Yes, the call for evidence will be launched shortly.

Languages: Education

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department has taken to increase modern foreign language provision in schools.

Nick Gibb: The reformed National Curriculum makes it compulsory for pupils in maintained schools to be taught a foreign language in Key Stage 2, and the English Baccalaureate (EBacc) performance measure, which includes languages, has seen the proportion of GCSE entries from pupils in state-funded schools in a modern foreign language (MFL) increase from 40% in 2010 to 46% in 2018.Recruiting MFL teachers is also a priority. Generous financial incentives are offered for languages teaching, including scholarships in modern foreign languages worth £28,000, and tax-free bursaries, typically worth up to £26,000. The Department is also working in partnership with Spain’s Ministry of Education and Vocational Training to deliver Spain’s Visiting Teachers Programme to provide schools with access to a pool of qualified teachers from Spain who are able to teach MFL. For the 2019/20 academic year, the programme will be open to secondary schools and also (as a pilot) to primary schools. The Department also has a Teacher Subject Specialism Training programme which aims to improve the subject knowledge of non-specialist teachers and returning teachers in MFL and to increase the number of hours taught.The Department has recently launched the new Teacher Recruitment and Retention Strategy, which will attract new teachers to all subjects, including MFLs.A £4.8 million MFL Pedagogy Pilot commenced in December 2018. It is managed by the newly appointed MFL Centre for Excellence and is run through nine school-led hubs, to improve uptake and attainment in languages at Key Stages 3 and 4. A pilot project in MFL undergraduate mentoring for secondary school pupils has been launched to drive up participation in the subject, specifically targeting areas of high disadvantage to extend access to languages for all pupils.The Department recently published and promoted a guidance leaflet[1] for parents, which explains why studying a language, as part of the EBacc, broadens opportunities in both education and employment. In February, attention was drawn to the benefits of studying a language among 13-14 year olds through a social media campaign.  [1] https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/english-baccalaureate-ebacc.

Literacy: Children

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment his Department has made of trends in the number of children daily reading unaided in England.

Nick Gibb: The Department does not hold data on the number of children daily reading unaided in England. The Department does, however, hold figures on pupils’ performance in reading assessments. This is an indicator of pupils’ ability to read unaided. A new, more rigorous national curriculum has been taught in primary schools since September 2014 and new tests and assessments based on this curriculum were first taken by pupils in summer 2016. Since 2016, the proportion of pupils reaching the expected standard in the reading test at the end of key stage 2 has risen from 66% to 75% in 2018. Regarding pupils in the earlier stages of reading, in 2018 there were 163,000 more 6 year olds in England on track to become fluent readers compared to in 2012. This represented 82% of pupils meeting the expected standard in the year 1 phonics screening check, compared to just 58% when the check was introduced in 2012. Regarding pupils who met the expected standard in phonics in year 1 in 2013, 88% went on to meet the expected standard in the key stage 2 reading test in 2018. England achieved its highest ever score in reading in 2016, moving from joint 10th place to joint 8th place in the most recent Progress in International Reading Literacy Study rankings. This follows a greater focus on reading in the primary curriculum and a particular focus on phonics. A national network of 32 primary schools across England has been appointed to become English Hubs, backed by £26.3 million funding. In addition to improving the teaching of phonics and early language development, these schools will champion reading for pleasure in the schools that they support.

Pupil Exclusions

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department has taken to estimate the number of children in England who were permanently excluded from a school and did not return to full time education in in the academic year 2017-2018.

Nick Gibb: The information requested, regarding statistics showing excluded pupils who did not return to full-time education, is not held centrally. Local authorities are responsible for arranging suitable full-time education for permanently excluded pupils, which must begin no later than the sixth day of the exclusion. Statistics on exclusions in academic year 2017/18 are not yet available. Exclusion statistics covering 2016/17 are available in the National Statistics release 'Permanent and fixed-period exclusions in England 2016 to 2017'.https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/permanent-and-fixed-period-exclusions-in-england-2016-to-2017.

Pre-School Education: Closures

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 5 March 2019 to Question 227098 on Pre-School Education: Closures, how much of the £26.3 million investment in the network of English Hubs has been allocated in each (a) region and (b) local authority.

Nick Gibb: English Hubs Programme funding covers English Hub activity, as well as central aspects of the programme, including the English Hubs Council and (from 2019/20) the English Hubs Training Centre. Each hub will receive up to £261,044 in 2018/19. Additional funding of approximately £49,000 in 2018/19 covers hub school induction events and English Hubs Council engagement for all hubs. Each hub will engage with up to 85 schools this year, a total of 2,720 schools. Data is not held on the local authorities in which each of these schools is located. The table below shows the total number of hubs in each region in 2018/19:RegionNumber of HubsEast Midlands & Humber3East of England & North East London3Lancashire & West Yorkshire6North4South Central & North West London3South East & South London3South West6West Midlands4Total for 2018/1932 The budget for 2019/20 will be allocated in due course.

Schools: Admissions

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to ensure that (a) more parents are able to access a place at their preferred school and (b) permanently excluded children are able to access places at alternative mainstream schools.

Nick Gibb: The Department for Education has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Headteachers

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which head teachers he met on (a) 7 March 2019 (b) 8 March 2019 and (c) 9 March 2019.

Nick Gibb: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Education met the head teachers of Birchington Church of England Primary School, Reculver Church of England Primary School and Loose Primary School on 7 March 2019. He met the head teachers of Eggar’s School and Ditcham Park School on 8 March 2019. He attended an event for aspiring black, asian and minority ethnic school leaders on 9 March 2019, where he spoke alongside the head teacher of Kingsford Community School.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Poultry: Chlorine

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the suitability of chlorinated chicken for the UK market.

David Rutley: The Government has made it clear that we will not water down our food or animal welfare standards in pursuit of any trade deal. Existing food standards on issues such as chlorinated chicken will come across through the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. This will continue when we leave the EU.

Sheep

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on the local environment of sheep farming.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The sheep sector plays a vital role in contributing to rural life, local economies and the iconic landscapes of the UK. With over 50% of the national flock being in Wales and Scotland, the sheep sector is an important sector across the UK. The climate and topography of the UK mean that much of it is unsuited to commercial crop production, especially in Wales, Scotland and the north and west of England, where livestock production is the main use of agricultural land. Sheep are a major part of that, with breeds adapted to thrive in areas of harsh climate, topography and low feed-value vegetation. Furthermore, grazing of sheep has a key role in maintaining open habitats, primarily grasslands and heathlands, by hindering succession to scrub or woodland in the lowlands and sub-montane zone. In doing so they are an important land management resource. We are currently developing our own farming policies as we prepare to leave the EU. Our intention, as laid out in the Agriculture Bill, is for our future policies to primarily reward farmers for providing environmental benefits. We are currently working with farmers, land managers and representative bodies including the National Farmers Union, Tenant Farmers Association and National Sheep Association to ensure that our future Environmental Land Management system can work with livestock farms including sheep farms in lowland and upland areas. Defra undertakes and coordinates research across the whole food production system, looking at factors including environmental impacts, productivity, efficiency, waste reduction etc. This includes research into sustainable diets, local and seasonal produce, environmental labelling, supply chain efficiency, and sustainable consumption.

Food: Imports

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the implications for food imports from the US of the United States - European Union Negotiations: Summary of Specific Negotiating Objectives, published by the Office of the United States Trade representative in February 2019.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Government welcomes the publication of the United States - European Union Negotiations: Summary of Specific Negotiating Objectives, and the more recent publication of Specific Negotiating Objectives for the UK. These publications are of course important, but do not change the Government’s view that any future trade deal must work for UK consumers, farmers and businesses.The Government has made it clear that we will not water down our food or animal welfare standards in pursuit of any trade deal. Existing food standards on issues such as chlorinated chicken will come across through the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. For hormone treated beef the UK has transposed EU Council Directive 96/22/EC into UK law, which prohibits the use of artificial growth hormones in both domestic production and imported products. This will continue when we leave the EU.

Animals: Exports

Sir David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to ensure that the UK is able to end the live export of animals after the UK leaves the EU.

David Rutley: Our manifesto made it clear that we would take early steps to control the export of live farm animals for slaughter once we leave the EU. We launched a call for evidence last year, the findings of which we asked the Farm Animal Welfare Committee to review. Their report is expected shortly. Once we have received that report, we will consider how best to take forward the manifesto commitment. All options, including a possible ban, remain on the table.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Public Consultation

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many consultations by his Department (a) are open, (b) are closed awaiting a Government response and (c) have been initiated since 2016.

Mr Robert Goodwill: All public government consultations are uploaded onto GOV.UK where one can filter consultations by many criteria, including department, official document status and date of publication. As of 12 March 2019 Defra had:a) 9 open public consultations,b) 14 consultations closed awaiting a government response; andc) 116 consultations published in total from 1 January 2016.

Pigs: Bovine Tuberculosis

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many TB tests on pigs have returned a negative result after a primary inconclusive test result in England in each year since 2013.

Mr Robert Goodwill: We have interpreted the term ‘inconclusive test result’ as suspect pig slaughterhouse cases, tested in abattoirs when TB-like lesions are identified. For these ‘inconclusive’ cases, post mortem samples have been taken and processed for bacteriological isolation of Mycobacterium bovis (M. bovis).This information is available under the periodical statistics on Gov.UK:https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/other-tb-statistics EnglandYearTotal individual animal specimens submitted for post-mortem examinationof which:- animal specimens where culturing was not attemptedAnimal specimens which underwent laboratory cultureof which:- animal specimens with culture results pending at end of periodof which:- animal specimens that were culture positive for M. Bovis 20112720272036 20121913188020 201377374031 201457156014 201567265023 201611713104023 20171114107019 Q1-Q3 20181014971817

Pigs: Bovine Tuberculosis

Sir Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the average time taken is from the date of a first sample to a final test result in TB tests on pigs in England for each year since 2013.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The average time to obtain results from growing cultures in the laboratory from samples taken from pigs can vary between 42 and 98 days.  AnimalsAverage Days20137381201468111 20156593201610493 201710888 201814492 APHA’s laboratory IT system does not hold the date the sample was taken. The data provided above has been calculated using the date when the samples were received at the APHA laboratory. This data excludes any incomplete submissions or those currently pending.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Chief Scientific Advisers

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many meetings he held with his Department’s Chief Scientific Adviser between 1 December 2018 and 28 February 2019.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Secretary of State had two bilateral meetings with Defra’s Chief Scientific Adviser between 1 December 2018 and 28 February 2019. The Chief Scientific Adviser also regularly attends other Secretary of State meetings on wider issues.

Dogs: Quarantine

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many puppies have been seized and taken into quarantine since the Animal and Plant Health Agency established an intelligence team to gather data, intelligence and information on the illegal movement of dogs and puppies in 2015.

David Rutley: The Animal and Plant Health Agency’s (APHA’s) data retention period for import data is 3 years. APHA holds data on animals landed in Great Britain that do not meet the import requirements and therefore require quarantine, under the Rabies (Importation of Dogs, Cats and Other Mammals) Order 1974 (as amended) (RIO). The number of puppies quarantined in the last three years can be found in the table below. The figures for illegal animals also include: • pet animals that arrive at UK airports and during the pets check are found to be non-compliant.• animals that are found ‘inland’ and after a trading standards investigation are found to be non-compliant.  Number of puppies quarantined201668020174862018178 There are many reasons why people do not comply with the legislation concerning the importation of dogs entering the UK. As a result, Defra and APHA have put in place mechanisms to understand the cause of non-compliance through collaborative working with third sector partners, enhanced working with carriers and better sharing of information by developing intelligence networks. Due to the complex landscape, it is not possible to correlate the number of seizures to any one particular initiative. There have been a number of recent focused efforts from all involved parties including training carrier operatives on the requirements for compliant travel and changes to the hours of working of APHA staff at Dover. Intelligence gathered has been used effectively to alert other EU member states of issues arising, to disrupt illegal trade before it enters the UK. It is therefore through a combination of numerous activities that the number of dogs requiring seizure has dropped.

Livestock: Transport

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many animals have been transported to mainland Europe for slaughter in each of the last five years.

David Rutley: The Trade Control and Expert System (TRACEs) publishes data on the number of exports for slaughter. TRACEs has only published data from 2014-2016; data for 2017 and 2018 has not yet been published. The data can be viewed here: https://ec.europa.eu/food/animals/live_animals_en The total volume of trade in live exports for slaughter to the EU from the UK from 2014 to 2016 was:  201420152016Cattle 3,9827,67310,464Sheep361,769321,343385,099Pigs 10,39612,7728,916Total378,161343,803406,495 The majority of animals are exported from Northern Ireland to the Republic of Ireland.

Seasonal Workers: Cornwall

Steve Double: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the number of seasonal workers employed in Cornwall in each of the last five years.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The number of seasonal, casual or gang labourers on commercial agricultural holdings(a) in the South West Region on 1 June in each of the last five years is shown in the table below. County breakdowns are only available for 2013 and 2016, therefore figures for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly are included for these years only. Seasonal, casual or gang labour(b)  20132014201520162017South West Region44295440574454156757Cornwall and Isles of Scilly837n/an/a1221n/a n/a: not availableSource: Defra June Survey of Agriculture(a) Commercial holdings are those with significant levels of farming activity. These significant levels are classified as any holding with more than 5 hectares of agricultural land, 1 hectare of orchards, 0.5 hectares of vegetables or 0.1 hectares of protected crops, or more than 10 cows, 50 pigs, 20 sheep, 20 goats or 1,000 poultry.(b) Seasonal, casual or gang labour is defined as seasonal, casual and gang workers, including family and non-family workers who are usually employed for less than 20 weeks of the year.

Hedgehogs: East Midlands

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps he has taken to tackle the decline in hedgehog numbers in the East Midlands.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government has published advice on how to help hedgehogs through the creation of hedgehog havens and making gardens as welcoming as possible. This can be accessed at: www.gov.uk/government/news/five-simple-steps-to-transform-gardens-in-to-hedgehog-havens We support the excellent work being undertaken by the British Hedgehog Preservation Society and the People’s Trust for Endangered Species, such as the Hedgehog Street campaign and their Conservation Strategy for Hedgehogs which sets out a ten year approach to supporting this species. Natural England is taking action to address some of the objectives in this strategy. As set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan, we are committed to creating or restoring 500,000 hectares of wildlife-rich habitat to provide benefits for species such as the hedgehog. Agri-environment schemes such as Countryside Stewardship provide funding to restore, extend and link important habitats and boost food resources for a range of species including hedgehogs. These actions are at a national level. We do not hold information on how they are being taken forward in the East Midlands specifically.

Smallholdings

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to ensure that local authorities are delivering value for money through their management of county council smallholding estates.

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of whether recent disposals of county council smallholding estates have delivered the greatest possible return for the taxpayer.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Defra’s annual report to Parliament on the proceedings of local authority smallholdings in England published on 27 February 2019, shows that the reporting smallholding authorities generated a revenue account net surplus of around £16 million in 2017/2018 from their council smallholdings estates. Local authorities regularly review all their commercial assets to establish strategies to help meet financial requirements and deliver service transformation needs. We encourage all smallholding authorities reviewing rural estate assets to follow the principles and guidance set out in the Rural Estate Asset Management Planning Good Practice Guidance which was prepared by the Association of Chief Estates Surveyors and the Tenancy Reform Industry Group.

Smallholdings

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when the Government last carried out an assessment of the performance of local authorities in delivering the objective for county council smallholding estates as set out in section 39 of the Agriculture Act 1970.

Mr Robert Goodwill: I value the contribution council farms make in providing opportunities for new entrants to start off in farming. Every year Defra lays a report on the proceedings of Local Authority Smallholdings before Parliament and publishes it on GOV.UK. The most recent report was published on 27 February 2019 providing statistical and financial information on the delivery of council farm smallholdings estates across England for the financial year of 1 April 2017 to 31 March 2018. The report can be downloaded from the GOV.UK website here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/68th-annual-report-to-parliament-on-smallholdings-in-england

Smallholdings

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to assist local authorities in the management of their county council smallholding estates for the benefit of new entrant and progressing farmers.

Mr Robert Goodwill: I value the contribution council farms make as a way into farming for new entrants and progressing farmers. As set out in our Health and Harmony Policy Statement in September 2018, we are considering how to help Local Authorities who want to invest in their Council Farms, so that they offer real opportunities for new farmers to start a foundation business and gain the experience they need to progress onto a larger unit.

Nature Conservation

Sue Hayman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much his Department has spent in restoring British endangered species in each if the last three years.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: This is a devolved matter and the information provided relates to England only. Natural England runs a Species Recovery Programme which directly supports research and action to recover endangered or threatened species. Funding allocations for the Programme were £873,000, £737,000 and £777,000 in the years 2016/17, 2017/18 and 2018/19. This is only a small proportion of the Government’s expenditure on threatened species. Species conservation is integrated into funding programmes for protected sites, agri-environment schemes and wider investment in wildlife-rich habitats and ecosystems. Defra’s agencies and non-departmental bodies also work with a range of partners to support the recovery of threatened species. Natural England is working with a range of conservation organisations on the externally funded Back from the Brink programme to protect threatened species and their habitats. The Environment Agency is working with partners to support the conservation of freshwater priority species such as the freshwater pearl mussel and salmon.

Nature Reserves

Sue Hayman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many national nature reserves are (a) at risk of deteriorating and (b) deteriorating.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Information on the condition of National Nature Reserves is publicly available on Natural England’s designated sites viewer: https://designatedsites.naturalengland.org.uk/SearchEngland.aspx

Wildlife: Licensing

Sue Hayman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many wildlife licence applications Natural England has completed within the 30-day time frame in each of the last five years.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: For the last five years, the percentage of licence applications Natural England has dealt with within 30 days, or to a different deadline agreed with the applicant, are as follows: 2014/15: 55.80% of 11,520 applications dealt with on time2015/16: 70.74% of 13,765 applications dealt with on time2016/17: 88.13% of 15,122 applications dealt with on time2017/18: 86.33% of 15,213 applications dealt with on time2018/19 (to 11 March 2019): 88.38% of 15,025 applications dealt with on time

Sites of Special Scientific Interest

Sue Hayman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many SSSI enforcement actions have Natural England undertaken in each year since 2010.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Natural England publishes figures on the number of enforcement actions it undertakes in its annual reports, which are publicly available and published on gov.uk.https://www.gov.uk/guidance/enforcement-laws-advice-on-protecting-the-natural-environment-in-england

Pets: Animal Welfare

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to amend (a) the statutory Code of Practice for the Welfare of Dogs and Code of Practice for the Welfare of Cats in relation to invisible fencing containment systems and (b) the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to ban the use of hand-held remote controlled e-collar devices.

David Rutley: On 27 August 2018, the Government announced that it will ban the use of hand-held remote controlled electronic collars (e-collars) for dogs. The ban will not include collars used for invisible fencing. The necessary legislation will be introduced as soon as Parliamentary time allows. The statutory codes of practice for the welfare of dogs and cats will be reviewed in the light of the change in the law on e-collars.

Animal Welfare (Sentencing and Recognition of Sentience) Bill (Draft)

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has revised the draft Animal Welfare (Sentencing and Recognition of Sentience) Bill since his Department closed the consultation on 26 October 2018; and when he plans to lay the Bill before Parliament.

David Rutley: The Government is committed to ensuring that any necessary changes required to UK law are made in a rigorous and comprehensive way to ensure animal sentience is recognised after we leave the EU, and to increasing maximum sentences for animal cruelty offences from six months to five years. The Government published the draft Animal Welfare (Sentencing and Recognition of Sentience) Bill for public consultation on 12 December 2017. The consultation closed on 31 January 2018 and the summary of the consultation responses was published on 7 August 2018. Officials continue to engage with stakeholders to further refine the Government’s proposals on animal sentience.

Pets: Sales

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to ban third party sales of puppies and kittens.

David Rutley: On 23 December 2018, the Government announced that it would ban the third party selling of puppies and kittens. The necessary legislation will be introduced as soon as Parliamentary time allows.

Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority

Members: Finance

Ian Murray: To ask The  Member for Broxbourne, representing the Speaker's Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority, if the Committee will undertake a survey of hon. Members on the (a) cost and (b) resources allocated by hon. Members to responding to e-mails from (i) 38 Degrees and (ii) other campaigning organisations; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Charles Walker: The Independent Parliamentary Standard Authority (IPSA) was established to ensure MPs have the funding and support they need to conduct their parliamentary duties effectively. IPSA is also responsible for setting the level of the MPs’ Staffing Budget and for periodically consulting on all aspects of its expenses scheme, including on Members’ staff expenditure. At these times, Members and others are invited to respond to IPSA’s consultations and to suggest amendments to its scheme.It is for individual MPs themselves to decide how their own staffing arrangements best support their work and how they respond to campaigning organisations such as 38 Degrees.In respect of oversight of IPSA’s budgets, the Speaker’s Committee for the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority is in place to approve its annual estimates of resources. In addition, the Administration Committee meets representatives from IPSA to consider its support for Members and the way it operates its scheme.

Attorney General

Sentencing: Appeals

Jim Shannon: To ask the Attorney General, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on weight given to victim statements under the unduly lenient sentencing scheme.

Robert Buckland: Making a personal statement gives a victim of crime a voice in the criminal justice system. It enables them to explain the impact the crime has had on them in their own words so that it can be taken into account when an offender is sentenced.The weight to be given to the impact a crime has had on a victim is a matter of discretion for the sentencing judge and will vary from case to case. It is one of several factors that the sentence judge will have to consider.Where the case is one within the unduly lenient sentencing scheme and the a Law Officer considers that the sentencing judge has not given proper weight to the impact a crime has had on the victim, then they may decide to refer the case to the Court of Appeal as being potentially unduly lenient.

Attorney General: Public Consultation

Peter Dowd: To ask the Attorney General, how many consultations by his Department (a) are open, (b) are closed awaiting a Government response and (c) have been initiated since 2016.

Robert Buckland: The Attorney General’s Office does not currently have any open consultations. There is one consultation that is closed awaiting a Government response. Three consultations have been initiated since 2016.

Wales Office

Wales Office: Public Consultation

Peter Dowd: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how many consultations by his Department (a) are open, (b) are closed awaiting a Government response and (c) have been initiated since 2016.

Nigel Adams: The Office of the Secretary of State for Wales has no public consultations open or closed awaiting a government response. The Office has published one consultation since 2016, on reducing toll prices on the Severn Crossings. The Office published this consultation jointly with the Department for Transport.

Wales Office: Energy

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what plans his Department has for participation in Earth Hour on 30 March 2019.

Nigel Adams: The Office of the Secretary of State for Wales supports the aims of Earth Hour and will be fully participating on 30 March. The Office will be turning off any non-essential electric lights at our London and Cardiff offices from 20:30 to 21:30 on that day.

Electoral Register: Wales

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what recent discussions he has had with the Minister for the Cabinet Office on increasing electoral registration and voter turnout in Wales.

Alun Cairns: I have regular discussions with the Minister for the Cabinet Office and the Minister for the Constitution on a range of issues, including electoral matters. The Government’s major reforms to the electoral registration system, including the introduction of Individual Electoral Registration have resulted in record levels of electors registering to vote in Wales and participating in our democracy. The Government set out its priorities for democratic engagement for 2019 and beyond in its report Democratic Engagement: Respecting, Protecting and Promoting Our Democracy, published in January. The report highlights the Government's commitment to ensuring everyone can make their voice heard free from abuse, making voting easier and more accessible for vulnerable and under-registered groups, and introducing measures to protect electors’ votes. The Wales Act 2017 devolved powers over National Assembly elections and local government elections in Wales. Officials from the UK Government and the Welsh Government are discussing areas for greater collaboration such as canvass reform and voter registration.

Wales Office: Consultants

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, how much his Department has spent on external consultants in each of the last four years.

Nigel Adams: The Office of the Secretary of State for Wales has to date spent £17,400 on external consultants in the current financial year. The Office spent nothing on external consultants in the previous three financial years.

Wales Office: Statistics

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what proportion of statistical datasets collected or collated by his Department are made publicly available.

Nigel Adams: All statistical datasets collected or collated by the Office of the Secretary of State for Wales are published except datasets that include personal data.

Ministry of Justice

Crime: Victims

Laura Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will allocate additional funding for resources to protect young victims of crime.

Edward Argar: Holding answer received on 13 March 2019



The government is committed to ensuring that young victims of crime get the protection and support they need. As the Prime Minister said in the House on 6 March, we have seen too many young lives lost to terrible crimes. The response must be cross agency, and focused on supporting and protecting victims and their families. The Government’s Serious Violence Strategy published last year sets out a wide range of actions intended to address serious violence including knife and gun crime, and homicides. We are working with the Home Office following the Home Secretary’s announcement in October 2018 for the £200 million Youth Endowment Fund (YEF). The fund will be delivered over the next 10 years, targeting those children most at risk of becoming involved in serious violence. In 2017/18 we spent £97m to fund support services for victims of crime, and we forecast to spend broadly the same in 2018-19. Included in this funding the Ministry of Justice provides approximately £68m to Police and Crime Commissioners to commission victim support services locally, based on the needs identified in their area. The Ministry of Justice provides approximately £3.4m a year for support to families bereaved by murder and manslaughter. A key priority and focus of resource within the Homicide Service we fund will be ensuring that support for families bereaved by serious violence such as gang crime, includes the right specialist support to support and help protect young family members. As announced in the government’s Victims Strategy, which was published on 10 September 2018, my officials are considering longer-term and more sustainable funding arrangements as part of our work to develop a new delivery model for supporting victims and witnesses of crime.

Criminal Proceedings: Veterans

Mr David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the undertakings in the Armed Forces Covenant, what steps he is taking to ensure that veterans are identified when they enter the criminal justice system.

Edward Argar: Holding answer received on 13 March 2019



We recognise the sacrifices made by all who have served in the Armed Forces. For those few who come into contact with the Criminal Justice System, it is important their needs are assessed and support offered. NHS England’s Liaison and Diversion services assess vulnerable individuals, including identifying former service personnel at first point of contact with the Criminal Justice System, for example at police stations and courts across England. Individuals may be diverted away from the Criminal Justice System, or into appropriate community orders. Information on previous military service is also asked at first contact with probation, typically in court, and during screening on entry to custody. Prisoners can declare their previous service at any point in their sentence. Prisons will typically have a member of staff operating as a Veterans in Custody Support Officer, and work with military charities, to encourage this to happen.

Registered Intermediaries

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many registered intermediaries there (a) are and (b) are estimated to be in the next 12 months.

Lucy Frazer: There are currently 185 Registered Intermediaries on the Witness Intermediary Scheme register, with an additional 30 candidates either in training or awaiting training. There have been ongoing regional recruitment campaigns since December 2017 and these will continue over the course of the next 12 months. It is not possible to provide an estimate of the expected number of RIs in 12 months’ time, as this will be affected by how many new recruits join the scheme, as well as how many existing Registered Intermediaries decide to retire or otherwise leave the scheme.

Registered Intermediaries: Vetting

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of requiring registered intermediaries to have an enhanced DBS check given their access to vulnerable witnesses.

Lucy Frazer: Registered Intermediaries are required to satisfy a ‘basic’ level DBS check in line with legislation set out in the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. Whilst Registered Intermediaries may interact with vulnerable victims and witnesses they always do so in the presence of another responsible adult, usually a police officer. They are never alone with witnesses, to prevent disclosures being made solely in their presence, and they do not have caring responsibilities.

Sexual Offences: Children and Vulnerable Adults

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he has taken to dispel rape myths and stereotypes from juries in line with the commitment in the Sexual Violence against Children and Vulnerable People National Group Progress Report and Action Plan 2015.

Edward Argar: We want rape victims to have the confidence to report these crimes, knowing they will get the support they need through the system and that everything will be done to bring offenders to justice. The CPS have almost doubled the number of specialist prosecutors in their dedicated Rape and Serious Sexual Offence Units, enhanced training and improved the support they offer victims through criminal proceedings. Specialist prosecutors are trained to deal with the challenges involved in prosecuting these offences, including the impact of issues of consent and of rape myths and stereotypes. The Senior Judiciary recognise that rape myths could have an impact on the trial of sex offences. The 2018 Crown Court Compendium builds on previous guidance which gives judges a model practice direction for the purpose of warning the jury of the risks of stereotyping alleged victims of sexual offences. It gives more examples of possible directions, and lists situations where jury directions may be needed. Given the potential impact on trial fairness, the judiciary rightly maintain that any course of further action in this area should be well considered and informed by empirical evidence. The President of the Queen’s Bench Division has, therefore, commissioned empirical research with juries which will help inform future support, guidance and training needs on myths and stereotypes.

Witnesses: Children

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he has taken (a) to monitor and (b) improve compliance with the Under 10s Protocol since it was reissued.

Edward Argar: This Government is committed to ensuring that very young witnesses receive the support they need through the criminal justice system in an adequate and timely manner. We reviewed the Protocol in 2018 in conjunction with the CPS, HMCTS, Police and Judiciary. Following its publication, briefings and updated training materials have been issued to practitioners and users to ensure the process from first report of a crime to the charging decision and case coming to court for young witnesses under 10 years old is expediated. We expect the relevant agencies to review compliance of the Protocol.

Legal Profession: Training

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many barristers have received the advocacy and the vulnerable training.

Lucy Frazer: The training provided by the Inns of Court Advocacy service delivers on our manifesto commitment that publicly funded advocates will have specialist training in handling victims before taking on serious sexual offences. As of February 2019, the Bar Council have confirmed 3000 barristers have been trained out of an anticipated 3600 who work in this field.

Witnesses: Video Conferencing

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many young witnesses have provided evidence from a non-court live link site in each year for which data is available.

Lucy Frazer: The department does not hold data on the number of young witnesses who give evidence via video link (either within a court building, or from non-court live link site). There are remote links in each court region, which provide victims and witnesses with the opportunity to give evidence away from the court room.

Witnesses: Video Conferencing

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of how many non-court sites where vulnerable witnesses may provide evidence (a) are operational and (b) will be operational in the next 12 months.

Lucy Frazer: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Witnesses: Children

Ann Coffey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when the pilot for non-court remote link sites for Section 28 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 is planned to commence.

Lucy Frazer: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Young Offenders: Criminal Proceedings

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average time taken in days has been from arrest to sentence for persistant young offenders in each year since 2008.

Rory Stewart: The Ministry of Justice publishes information on the average number of days from offence to completion for all completed cases involving young offenders. This can be found here in the supplementary tables Annex E; https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/youth-justice-statistics-2017-to-2018. The published data relates to all completed cases regardless of outcome, it does not breakdown by persistence or sentencing (i.e. guilty and not guilty). The Ministry of Justice can identify persistent young offenders from arrest to completion but in order to link data to sentence outcomes we would need to do manual checks of a large data set and such information could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Crown Courts: ICT

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which courts were affected by the temporary failure of the Crown Court Digital Case System during the week commencing 4 March 2019.

Lucy Frazer: HMCTS initial investigations suggest that there were eight adjournments as a result of the slowdown of DCS: Two cases at Manchester (Crown Square), two cases at Sheffield Crown Court, three cases at Leeds Crown Court and one case at Norwich Crown Court. Six cases were relisted for hearing on 8 March 2019. The remaining two cases will be heard on 14 March 2019.

Ministry of Justice: Public Expenditure

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 5 December 2018 to Question 196793 on  Ministry of Justice: Public Expenditure, for what reason the annual real terms increase/(decrease) is -2% and the cumulative real terms decrease is 3% in 2011-12.

Rory Stewart: The answer on the 5th December 2018 contained an error in the table provided.Please see below, corrected table. The table below shows the annual change in the Ministry of Justice’s available total resource funding from HM Treasury, including depreciation, in real terms to 2019/20. Budgets for the years 2020/21 and 2021/22 will be set in the next Spending Review. The figures below represent HMT funding received for 2010/11 – 2018/19, and the settlement as agreed at Autumn Statement 2016 for 2019/20 (which is subject to change).  2010/112011/122012/132013/142014/152015/162016/172017/182018/ 192019/ 202  Total Resource DEL19.08.98.68.07.77.37.57.88.16.6Total Resource DEL (restated in 2018/19 prices)10.210.09.58.68.27.77.77.98.16.5  Annual real terms increase/(decrease)-2%-5%-9%-5%-6%0%2%3%-20%Cumulative real terms decrease-2%-7%-15%-19%-24%-24%-23%-21%-37%1 Includes both fiscal and non-fiscal funding from HM Treasury. Excludes capital spend. 2 Based on the SR15 Settlement, with revisions as agreed at AS16. The Ministry continues to engage with HM Treasury on the department’s funding requirements ahead of the Spending Review in 2019.

Private Rented Housing: Rents

Rosie Duffield: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many Rent Repayment Orders have been made by each of the five regional First-Tier residential property tribunals under (a) section 44, (b) section 45 and (c) section 46 of the Housing and Planning Act 2016.

Lucy Frazer: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Dangerous Driving: Prosecutions

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been prosecuted for causing death by dangerous driving in each of the last five calendar years.

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been convicted of causing death by dangerous driving in each of the last five calendar years.

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people convicted of causing death by dangerous driving received a suspended sentence in each of the last five calendar years.

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average prison sentence given to people jailed for causing death by dangerous driving was in each of the last five calendar years.

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people convicted of causing death by dangerous driving received the maximum 14 year jail sentence in each of the last five calendar years.

Rory Stewart: The number of people prosecuted, convicted and given a suspended sentence or immediate custodial sentence for causing death by dangerous driving, and the average custodial sentence length in each of the last five years has been published up to December 2017 and can be found in the ‘Outcomes by offence data tool’, available at the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/733981/outcomes-by-offence-tool-2017-update.xlsx In the Offence filter, select ‘4.4 Causing Death by Dangerous Driving (MOT)’, and the table will populate with the proceedings and outcomes for this offence by calendar year:Prosecutions – row 23Convictions – row 24Suspended sentences – row 34Average custodial sentence length – row 54 In the last five years, no offender found guilty of ‘causing death by dangerous driving’ received a 14 year custodial sentence.

Dangerous Driving: Sentencing

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what progress the Government is making on bringing forward legislative proposals on longer sentences for drivers who cause death by dangerous driving; and if he will make a statement.

Rory Stewart: We will bring forward proposals to increase the maximum penalty for causing death by dangerous driving as soon as the parliamentary timetable allows.

Cabinet Office

Cabinet Office: Public Consultation

Peter Dowd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many consultations by his Department (a) are open, (b) are closed awaiting a Government response and (c) have been initiated since 2016.

Oliver Dowden: There is currently one open Cabinet Office consultation. Nine closed Cabinet Office consultations are awaiting a Government response. Eighteen Cabinet Office consultations have been initiated since 1st January 2016

Eurostat

Ronnie Cowan: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps the Government will take to ensure that UK statistics remain cross-comparable with Eurostat in the event (a) of the UK leaving the EU without a deal and (b) that the UK otherwise ceases collaboration with Eurostat.

Chloe Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response
(PDF Document, 129.09 KB)

Testicular Cancer

Jim Shannon: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many people have been diagnosed with testicular cancer in the last 12 months.

Chloe Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response
(PDF Document, 109.24 KB)

Allergies: Death

Jo Swinson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many (a) men and (b) women have died from anaphylaxis in each of the last five years.

Chloe Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response
(PDF Document, 75.32 KB)

UK Membership of EU: Referendums

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make it his policy to obtain agreement from the EU to an extension of the Article 50 period to enable (a) public and (b) parliamentary consideration of the outcome of the National Crime Agency investigation into possible collusion between prominent Leave campaigners and the Russian Government during the 2016 referendum campaign.

Mr David Lidington: To date, we have not seen evidence of successful interference in UK democratic processes, but we are not complacent. We know that certain states routinely use disinformation and other means as a foreign policy tool, and have seen evidence of this happening elsewhere. The Government has taken steps to ensure that there is a coordinated structure across all relevant UK authorities to defend against interference in British politics whether by Russia, or any other state. We treat the integrity and security of our democratic processes extremely seriously. The EU referendum provisions were carefully scrutinised and ratified by Parliament. In line with the precedent for referendums, there was a six week period in which the formal result and administration of the EU Referendum could be challenged by judicial review. The Electoral Commission is an independent organisation and its investigations are a matter for it alone. We must now allow the National Crime Agency space to proceed with a thorough investigation of this matter and I will not be commenting further on a live investigation. 17.4 million people voted to leave the EU and that mandate should be respected.